Spring Break
by literallyliterati
Summary: AU Literati. Rory meets a cute guy on Spring Break her freshmen year at Yale. He also happens to like her back. What happens after.
1. Leather jackets in California

**A/N: So this idea came to me while watching Girls in Bikinis, Boys doing the Twist. What if Rory and Jess had never met before? He's still Luke's nephew but what if he was never sent to Stars Hollow and both had a little different personalities? Some of this taken from the actual episode, with my own Jess Mariano twist.**

Rory looked out at the people coming out of the car. They were loud and there was a bunch of them who had apparently fit into this one car.

Paris scoffed beside her. "You think Ringling knows about them?"

"No, but they should," Rory resisted a laugh.

She looked past the car and saw a boy off to the side. He was standing with two other guys and when he turned, she had seen a book in his back pocket. He looked up toward the balcony, where she was, and she froze.

He gave her a smirk and she returned it with a small smile of her own. Paris noticed the exchange and nodded. "Nice."

"What?" Rory looked over at her.

"The guy," she grinned in her own Paris-like way.

Rory pretended to be annoyed and walked back into their room. "That was nothing."

Paris eyed her skeptically. "Uh-huh. And Asher is only adequately good as a lover."

"Oh! Gross," Rory exclaimed and made a face. "I didn't need to hear that."

"Come on, Gilmore," Paris continued. "You and the bag boy have been broken up for months. Go have fun with the cute guy. Its spring break."

She made some excuse about checking out the bathroom in the room and left Rory alone with her thoughts. She walked back out to the balcony but the guy was gone. She sighed and figured that was the last of that.

...

The next day Paris and Rory laid out at the pool. The crowd had only gotten bigger and their small gang had gotten smaller. Neither of them had seen Glenn since arrivals and Janet disappeared somewhere. Rory had taken her mom's advice and gotten a different bathing suit as well but she covered it with a tank top and shorts, not quite feeling as comfortable as she hoped.

There was a loud squeal behind them and both girls looked to see what it was. Rory's eyes widened at the sight of Madeline and Louise. "Oh my god!"

"Rory Gilmore...," Madeline said.

Louise finished, "...and Paris Gellar."

"As I live and breath," Madeline beamed. "I did not expect to see the two of you here."

"New Haven got very cold," Rory said with a smile.

Paris looked as surprised as a person swimming in an ocean only to spot a shark. "We can't all be party animals, can we?"

The two girls laughed. Paris' face softened and it was obvious she had missed her friends though she would never admit it. "Paris, we have missed you!"

"Come, sit," Madeline instructed. "Let's catch up."

Louise pushed them towards their previous seats. "What's going on? How's Yale?"

"Yale is amazing," Rory gushed. "I have amazing classes, some of it's tough but worth it and -"

"Yeah, yeah," Louise waved her hand. "What are the boys like?"

Madeline leaned towards Paris. "How's that boyfriend? Jamie?"

"We broke up," Paris told them.

"What?" Louise's mouth fell. "Why? He was gorgeous!"

Rory laughed. "She has a new boyfriend now."

"Oh, do tell," Louise almost purred.

"He's older," Paris started.

"Oh, I love older men!" Madeline gushed. "They take you to the best restaurants!"

"He's an author," Paris went on. "A professor."

"Tenured?" Madeline asked.

"Long ago," Rory answered.

"What does he buy you?" Louise asked, a look of wonderment on her facd.

Paris shook her head. "He doesn't buy me anything. Asher isn't rich."

"What?" Louise's fell fell. "You're kidding."

"Paris doesn't kid," Madeline added.

"Oh my god," Louise gasped.

Paris got defensive. "Hey! Asher is an amazing man. He doesn't need money to keep my interest..."

Her voice had faded from Rory's ears as she looked across the pool and saw the guy from last night. He was watching her and wore a leather jacket. She wondered how hot that must feel in the Florida weather. Madeline and Louise noticed her smile and looked behind them. Huge grins appeared on their face when they turned back around.

"Who is he?" Louise grinned devilishly.

"We've never met," Rory told them.

"Please," Paris scoffed. "You and James Dean over there have been giving eye sex since last night."

Rory's face reddened but only got the other girl's interest even more. "Paris! Have not."

"Go talk to him," Madeline urged. "Look at him. He is absolutely gorgeous."

"If you don't, I will," Louise warned. "And trust me, I really will."

"I wouldn't doubt that," Paris drank some of her drink.

Rory looked back at the guy. He was still there, unlike last night, but now he was alone. Whoever the guy with him was had left and he looked over at her quickly before he walked to get a drink. "Okay."

"Whoo!" Madeline and Louise yelled. "Go get him!"

Rory stood up and straightened out her clothes. The three of them watched her walk away and she took a few deep breaths. She couldn't believe she was doing this. Her only experience with boys had been Dean and that brief flirtation with Tristan. She wished she at least bad a few drinks in her to do this.

The guy grabbed a beer out of ice and turned around, almost walking right into her. Rory took another deep breath and smiled. "Can you grab me one, too?"

"Yeah," he smiled and grabbed another one out and handed it to Rory. "Here you go."

"Thanks," she said. Rory fiddled her fingers with the top of the bottle, unsure what exactly to say. She mentally reminded herself to kill Madeline and Louise.

"Spring break?" He drank from his own beer.

Rory nodded. "Yeah. I came with some friends."

"Me, too," he smirked. He thought it was adorable how unlike the rest of the girls here she was. "Honestly, I rather be at home and reading."

Her eyes beamed. "Really? Me too."

"What are you reading?" He asked her, glad to find out she felt the same about all of this that he did.

"Lately, whatever my classes ask for," she pouted. "I haven't had much time to read on my own."

"Pity," he said and pulled out a book in his back pocket. It was an Ernest Hemingway. "Here."

Rory made a face as she looked at the front cover of _Death in the Afternoon_. "That's okay."

"Not a Hemingway fan?" He asked. She nodded. "Ah. That explains the face."

'What face?" She crossed her arms, amused that they settled into an easier conversation then she had expected.

"The I-rather-eat-sand face you got going there," he remarked.

"I -" She cut herself off. Rory had to admit, she would rather eat sand than read his books. "Who am I kidding? You're right."

"Of course I'm right," he shoved the book back into his back pocket.

"Wow," she nodded, smiling. "Cocky and a Hemingway fan. This can't be good."

"We should just part and go our separate ways now," he smirked.

"Definitely," she nodded. Her smile was still in place. "Go back to our friends and call it a day."

"Yep," he nodded, too.

Neither of them moved from their place. "Maybe I really should head back."

"Okay," he nodded again. Rory began to walk away and he called out. "Hey!"

She turned around only because of his voice. It was weird to not hear her name be called. "Yeah?"

"I'm Jess, by the way," he told her.

She smiled at him. "Rory."

"Its nice to meet you, Rory," he grinned back.

She nodded at him, the smile still on her face and turned back to go to her friends.

...

The phone rang on the nightstand and Rory groaned as she reached over for it. She checked the name of the caller and sat straight up. "Hello?"

"Do you want to hear some gossip?" Lorelai asked.

"Sure," Rory perked up. She was always in the mood for Stars Hollow gossip. "Tell me!"

"Luke is not wearing his socks," Lorelai said slowly, as if there was some secret meaning.

Rory didn't understand whatever it was. "Um...okay?"

"That's not the complete dish," lorelai laughed. "See, he is wearing socks but they're another man's!"

"What?" She said. "But how would he get another man's... ohhhhh."

Lorelai nodded on the other end. "Exactly."

"Oh, man," Rory said. "Poor Luke."

"He apparently buys all the exact same kind of socks with a certain color stripe," Lorelai went on. "But these particular socks had a different stripe and that's how he knew."

"That's...detailed," Rory laughed. "How do you know so much about Luke's socks?"

"He told me," Lorelai replied. "How else?"

Rory smirked at her phone. "Oh, please. You know he likes you."

"Excuse me?" Lorelai asked. "Luke? Luke Danes?"

"The one and the same," Rory agreed.

"He does not like me."

"Does so."

"Does not."

"Does so."

"Okay this could go all night," Lorelai said. "You're one to talk, by the way."

"Me?" Rory squeaked. "Why me?"

"You and Dean broke up months ago," she veered the subject off of her and Luke. "I don't see you getting involved with anyone."

Rory shook her head. "That's different."

"How so?" Her mother asked. "Come on, kid. I want you to be happy and you do not seem happy."

"I'm happy," Rory defended. "I am!"

"Have you dated anyone at Yale?" She asked.

"I had a few dates," Rory answered. She didn't add how both went nowhere.

Lorelai waited then spoke again. "How's spring break?"

"Great," Rory smiled then she remembered a leather jacket and a crooked smile. "Actually, to fit with your current topic, I think I met someone."

"You met someone?" Lorelai asked. "In Florida?"

"Uh-huh," Rory nodded. "I mean, I have no idea where he lives but we talked and mom, he likes books! Hemingway but he reads!"

Lorelai laughed lightly. "Of all the people to have a connection with, a book connection no less, you find someone in Florida...on spring break and you have no idea where he lives."

"Maybe I'll ask him," she said. "I think he's staying in the same hotel as me."

"Oh, hun," Lorelai groaned. "You know my next words are be careful right?"

"Why?" She asked.

"You need me to spell it out?" She asked then another laugh followed. "Maybe I don't have to worry."

Rory groaned this time. "Oh, Mom. Like you need to worry about...that."

"You sure?" She asked.

She nodded. "Very sure."

"Okay," her mother replied. "Then I say go talk to this guy, try to persuade him off Hemingway because I know it must be killing you."

"I can do that," Rory laughed.

...

The next day Rory didn't see Jess at all. She mostly stayed close to where she was yesterday in hopes of spotting him but so far no luck. Madeline and Louise found a bunch of guys to go hang out and Paris was in their room watching The Power of Myth. Rory had wanted to stay with her but the desire to see Jess again was too strong.

She searched around her and sank into her chair when she found no sign of him still. A voice behind her broke her out of her disappointment. "This seat taken?"

Jess stood behind her, a smirk on his face. She relaxed and shook her head. "No. Its not."

"Where are your friends?" He asked as he sat down next to her.

"Well, Paris is in the room," she answered. "Janet met a guy and I don't know where Glenn is. The other two went off to a party, I think."

Jess nodded thoughtfully. "Glenn?"

She registered the expression on his face. It looked like curiosity mixed with jealousy. "Just a friend."

"Okay," he leaned back. Today he didn't have his leather jacket on. In fact, today he had a wife beater on. "Your friends must be crazy, you know."

"What?" She asked as she snapped out of watching him. "Why?"

"They left you alone," he said. "I don't know. If I was them, I'd never leave a girl as pretty as you alone on spring break. Or any time really."

She flushed at his words and was glad he wasn't looking directly at her. "So you're gonna make sure I'm not alone, I'm guessing?"

"Oh, yeah," he said as seriously as he could with the smirk still plastered on his face. "You haven't heard? The president hired me to protect you."

"The president, huh?" She crossed her arms.

"Definitely," he leaned closer to her. "You're precious cargo, I hear."

She laughed. "I did not know that, as a matter of fact."

"Well, its a good thing I told you," he leaned back again. "Someone should know when they're precious cargo, after all."

Rory leaned back in her chair, too but still managed to face Jess. She was surprised at how easy conversation came with him especially considering how short of time they knew each other. A part of her wondered if he was just trying to have a spring break hookup but it seemed like more than that.

"What are you doing later tonight?" He asked, breaking her out of her thoughts.

She made a face. "I'm not sure. I'd have to ask my friends. Why?"

"There's a band playing tonight," she shrugged. "At Lemon's. I know a guy in the band."

"Is that the club down the street?" She asked.

Jess nodded. "Yeah."

"I'm under 21," she shyly admitted.

"So am I," he told her. "You can still get in a club."

"Oh," she whispered and hoped he didn't think she was weird for not knowing that.

He continued on. "Anyway, he asked me to come. Told me to bring anyone I want."

Rory was confused. "Okay."

He smiled at her innocence. "And I want to bring you."

"Me?" She asked. "Really?"

"Is that really that much of a surprise?" He laughed.

"Yeah," she laughed. "Kind of."

Jess hit her knee with his fist playfully. "I hope you'll still come."

"Yeah, I'll come," she smiled. "Is it okay if I bring my friends?"

"The more, the merrier," he told her. He noticed someone in the distance and she watched him mouth stuff to him. One of those things was 'can this wait?'

"Something wrong?" She asked.

He pointed at a guy behind her and rory looked. "That's my friend in the band. Wants me come with him."

"You can go," she waved him off.

Jess looked between his friend and the girl in front of him. "You sure?"

"Go ahead," she advised. "I'll come later and we can talk then."

He stood up but looked back down at her. "You'll really come?"

"Yes," she laughed. "Now go. I'm sure he's getting annoyed."

"If he saw you, he would understand," Jess told her and with that, he walked off to the direction his friend was in.

Rory smiled to herself. What was happening?

...

The club wasn't that crowded and Rory held onto Madeline's hand as Louise guided them through the club, a link chain of hands connected through the crowd. She wasn't sure what would happen if she lost any of them and didn't want to find out.

The band was setting up on stage and she found her eyes search the place for the familiar dark eyes and even darker hair. Louise grinned at her. "You see him yet?"

"Not yet, no," Rory shook her head.

Paris groaned. "Please don't tell me we came to this place just to get gilmore some."

Rory reddened. "Paris! No, that's not what we're doing."

Madeline grinned too now. "But we could, right?"

"Okay and topic changed from hooking me up please?" Rory pleaded.

"No," Louise said as she navigated them to the bar. It was close now and both her and Madeline let go of Rory and Paris. They managed to get their underage stamp off their hands and smirked. "You want anything?"

"No," Rory shook her head.

Paris held up a hand. "None for me."

Madeline shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Paris looked for someplace to sit and frowned. "There is nowhere to go here."

"We could dance," Rory suggested. She didn't really dance but figured it was what you at clubs.

"Dance," Paris nodded. "Okay."

The two of them started moving awkwardly. Neither knew how or what to do at a place like this. Rory now regretted not taking more chances before because she couldn't even dance without being obvious she had no clue how to.

Paris sighed. "Are we doing this wrong?"

"I thought I was the only one thinking that," Rory replied.

"Everyone's having a better time than us," Paris looked around. She spotted Janet dancing with a guy she didn't recognize. Madeline and Louise had also found some poor souls. It was obvious they weren't coming back anymore.

"Not everyone," Rory lied.

The place was more packed than it had been minutes ago when they entered. Tables were filled up and even seats by the bar were gone. The band was almost ready to play and still no sign of Jess. Paris looked like she was thinking hard about something and Rory wondered what.

"There has to be something to make this more fun," Paris told her.

Rory looked around. "Maybe we can ask Madeline and -"

She didn't get to finish her sentence before Paris grabbed her face and kissed her. Rory pulled away quickly. "What the hell?"

"Sorry," the blonde said. "I was talking about what they said, how they kiss to get stuff -"

"Madeline and Louise wear their underwear outside of their clothes!" Rory exclaimed. "I don't really want to do what they do."

She began to walk away from her friend and Paris followed behind. "How was I?"

"What?" Rory turned back to her. She had no idea where she walking to.

"I've always wondered what kind of kisser I am," Paris went on. "And you can't ask a guy so how was I?"

"Oh my god," Rory groaned.

"I'll tell you how you were," Paris offered.

"I don't wanna know what kind of kisser I am, Paris," she kept her stride and walked right up to a wall.

She nodded. "Please tell me how I was!"

"I'm walking away," Rory told her and as she moved away from the wall, she almost bumped right into someone. "Sorry."

"That's okay," Jess told her. He gripped his hands on her shoulders to steady her. "Hey."

"Hey," she smiled.

Paris rolled her eyes. "I bet you'd tell him what kind of kisser he is."

Rory gasped. "Paris! Goodbye now."

"Fine," she buffed. "I'm sure I can find someone else to hang out with."

She walked away angerily. Rory shouted after her. "Don't go kissing random people and asking them how you were!"

Jess raised his eyebrows. "Do I want to know?"

"I don't think so," she laughed.

"Okay," he nodded. "Do you wanna sit? They'll be playing soon and they have somewhere for me since it gets pretty crowded."

"Okay, sure," she smiled. She wasn't sure why she felt so nervous but she hoped it was only temporary.

Jess put his hand on the small of her back and led her to a table close to the stage. It was a booth and she slid in with Jess following after.

He ordered them drinks and soon after, the lead singer came on stage and starting playing. Rory noticed Jess watched her and she smiled at him, aware of how close they were sitting.

A few songs in, Jess learned toward Rory and whispered, "do you want to dance?"

"What?" She asked. She wasn't entirely sure she had heard him right.

"Dance," he repeated. "Do you want to?"

"Sure," she nodded. Rory hoped she wouldn't be as bad as dancing as she had been before.

Jess led her back out to dance floor with his hand on her back again. The song wasn't slow but it wasn't too fast either. Rory started moving and Jess pulled her closer to him and she found she didn't mind. He moved her to the exact beats and she relaxed instantly, all her worries about what kind of dancer she was faded away.

They danced for a couple of more songs before heading back to the booth. They started discussing literature and pop culture and she found she and Jess had a lot in common. Rory realized just how much she was the beginning to like him.

The two of them stayed until the band wrapped up and the club was closing. Rory didn't want the night to end, she thought as she watched Jess talk to the band and tell them good night. He walked back to her with a grin. "Ready to go?"

Rory nodded. "Yeah. Let's go."

Jess once again placed his hand on her back and they walked out of the club side by side. The walk back to the hotel wasn't long and she kept looking over him. They got to her door not long after and Rory felt sad. There was a light on inside the room and she saw the faint shadow of Paris sitting on the bed.

"Did you have a good time?" He asked her.

Rory turned her head back to Jess. "It was a lot of fun."

"Maybe we could do it again sometime," he said. "Before you leave."

"Do you live here?" She asked.

"Nah," he shook his head. "I actually live in New York City."

She almost gasped - that wasn't that far from her home. "Connecticut."

"Hello, neighbor," he grinned.

"It is very nice to meet you," she reached out her hand to shake his.

He didn't take her hand. Instead he leaned forward and kissed her. The kiss wasn't long and he pulled away after seconds. "I'm sorry. Was that okay?"

Rory smiled. "It was very okay."

Jess gave her another one of his crooked smiled and both leaned in this time. She wrapped her arms around his neck as his hands slid to her lower back. They stood there kissing for what felt like hours. Rory remembered everyone telling her to go for it and for once, she just wanted to let go and follow something not so sensible.

"Jess?" She asked when she pulled away.

His eyes were dark when she finally saw them. "Yeah?"

"You're staying here too right?" She fiddled with his collar to avoid looking at his face.

"Down that way," he nodded to his left. "Why?"

"I don't want this night be over," she answered.

He stared into her blue eyes and said, "Me, either."

Rory undid her hands from around his neck and one fell into place into his own. She walked him down and Jess stopped them in front ot his door. "I share it with the guy in the band. He won't come back."

"Okay," she nodded.

Jess unlocked the door and turned back to her. "We don't have to do anything, you know?"

"I know," she smiled. They walked into the room and he flicked on the lamp beside the bed. She found herself being brave and walked back to him and kissed him. "But...I want to."

Jess whispered in return, "Okay."

She kissed him again and he instantly responded. His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him. Her hands rested on his back as she moaned into his mouth. Jess back them up toward his bed and Rory fell down. He landed on top of her and she laughed which only made him kiss her again.

They kept kissing, neither taking it any further. Rory began to get impatient, she wiggled underneath him and rested her hands on the bottom of his shirt.

He let her take it off and it was as if that one action had awoken her to what she was doing. Rory felt very nervous all of a sudden but he kissed her softly and every touch, every kiss calmed her down. She closed her eyes and gave in to the warmth of his touch.

...

Sunlight streamed in through the hotel room's curtains. Rory winced, she felt sore and tired. She couldn't remember sleeping all that well that night and for some reason she was freezing. As she reached an arm out, she realized she wasn't alone and her eyes shot open.

There was black hair over a pillow beside her. Jess was asleep on his stomach and it all came back to her, including why she was cold. Rory sat up in the bed, she pulled the covers with her. That wasn't a good idea because it ended up uncovering Jess and she blushed furiously.

Quickly, she searched for her discarded clothes and put them on. Rory threw the blanket back over Jess and pulled her shirt over her head. Had she really just done this? Why didn't she regret it?

A noise sounded and she looked back to the bed. Jess turned himself over, now awake, and stared at her. "Morning."

"Morning," she blushed.

"That's really cute," he smiled. "The blush."

She moved a piece of hair behind her ear. "Thanks."

He pointed to her fully dressed form. "You sneaking out?"

"No," she said and Jess gave her a look. "Kinda. I've never done anything like this before."

"This meaning...?" His voice faded. She bit her lip and he understood. "Oh."

"Is that weird?" She asked.

He shook his head. "No."

"I should probably go back to my room," she said. "Paris might be worried."

"Okay," he agreed. "I'll see you?"

"Yeah," she smiled. "I'll see you."

"Good," he smiled back.

Rory walked over to him on the bed and kissed him lingeringly. "Bye."

"Bye," he swallowed hard as she walked out of his hotel room with a small wave.

Jess got up and showered and his phone started ringing loudly once he was out of the bathroom. "Hello?"

"Jess?" A man on the other end answered.

"Uncle Luke," Jess nodded though he was alone.. "This is a surprise."

"Do you think you can help me?" Luke asked.

"What's going on?" He asked seriously.

"Its nothing," he answered. "I...kinda got arrested last night."

"What?" He had to hide his laughter.

Luke sighed. "Come down and get me?"

"I'm not in New York," Jess told him.

"Oh," Luke was surprised now. "Far?"

"A little," he shrugged.

"Okay," he said. "I'll call someone else. Do you think they'll let me?"

"I'll call for you," Jess said. "Give me a number."

Luke told him the phone number and they said their goodbyes. Jess wrote them down and made a promise to come to Stars Hollow when he was back.

He dialed the number Luke had told him and a female answered the phone. "Hello. Lorelai Gilmore?"

 **A/N: What do you think? Send me a review! XD I thought this might be a little fun thing in the middle of NYG, especially since the last chapter didn't end so fluffy. But I'll be right back to that now! I hope you like this!**


	2. No regrets

**A/N: Surprise, I'm back! Not for a one shot but as an update! I'm gonna finally unmark this story as complete as originally intended. I don't know how often I will update but know I plan to at some time and I have the story in my head. Its gonna veer off from show canon slightly since Jess is involved with the storyline but I hope you like it.**

Rory closed the door behind her and sat on the hotel room bed. She smiled to herself as she thought about Jess and the previous night's events.

She didn't even notice Paris was there until she spoke. "Get lucky?"

"Huh?" Rory's head looked over at her friend. "Paris. I didn't even see you there."

Paris half-smirked. "Probably because youre daydreaming about James Dean."

"I was not -" she opened and closed her mouth to deny it but she knew it was a lie. "Okay, maybe I was."

"I knew it," the blonde replied. "So again, I ask, get lucky?"

"Paris!" She exclaimed and stood up.

"What?" Paris followed Rory to her suitcase where she searched through her clothes. "Did you?"

"It's private," she said.

Paris nodded. "So Mary is still a Mary?"

Rory turned to her after she grabbed a shirt out of her stuff. "As a matter of fact, no. Mary isn't a Mary."

"Wow," Paris said. "I honestly didn't expect that."

"You asked," Rory sighed and continued her search. "You expected something."

"I expected some teasing," she agreed. "I didn't expect my best friend to be the kind of girl to fall for a spring break hookup."

"Its not a spring break hookup," she closed her suitcase. "There are...there's feelings."

"I bet he's all warm and tingly now," Paris remarked.

Rory shook her head. "Jess likes me. I like him. Its not just about that."

"Okay," she said in a defeated tone. "If you say that, then I believe you. I just don't want you to get hurt, you know that, right?"

"I know," she said softly. It took a lot for Paris to admit stuff like that so she knew she meant it.

Paris walked away with a nod and left out the door. Rory grabbed the stuff she took out of suitcase and went into the bathroom to take a shower. When she came out and towel dried her hair, she took out her phone.

Suddenly she began to feel panic rise in her. She and Jess had never traded numbers. What if Paris had been right? She shook her head. No, she wasn't. He cared about her and she cared about him too. She'd call her mom then go see him in his room later. A new blush formed on her cheeks as she thought of what happened in that room.

Her mother's phone had a busy signal. Rory frowned at her phone and hung up. Wasn't she at work? Who would she be talking to on her phone? She shrugged it off. Maybe her grandmother had called with an emergency so Lorelai was unable to answer.

Instead of thinking too much into it, Rory grabbed her phone and key and walked out the door. She searched for the nearest coffee place and when she found it, she felt instantly calmer. The hot liquid felt good on her tongue and she closed her eyes in contentment.

When she was about to get a second cup of coffee, her phone rang. She didn't even check who it was and answered. "You're interrupting my coffee time."

"Oh I wouldn't want to do that," Lorelai replied on the other end.

"Mom," she smiled. "I called you."

"I know," she said. "I'm sorry. I actually got the weirdest phone call a little while ago."

"Weird?" She made a face. "Weird how?"

Lorelai chuckled. "Weird as in did you know Luke has a sister?"

"What?" Rory almost laughed. "I can't picture Luke with a sister. What's she like?"

"Oh no, I didn't talk to the sister," she said. "This is the even weirder part."

Rory held her cup close to her. "It gets weirder than Luke having a sibling?"

"Oh yes," she said. "Because apparently, his sister has a son."

"No!" Rory gasped. "Luke is an uncle?"

"Oh, yes he is," Lorelai answered. "And his nephew is on his way."

"His nephew is coming to Stars Hollow?" She questioned.

"Yes," Lorelai told her. "Wanna hear why?"

"There's more to the story?" Rory wondered in awe.

Lorelai laughed once but then replied. "Luke got arrested last night."

"No!" Rory gasped. "What happened?"

"Remember the sock thing?" Her mother asked.

Rory frowned confusedly. "He got arrested over socks?"

"Oh, no," Lorelai explained. "He got arrested because he went over to his house with Nicole and saw her go inside with some guy. They didn't come out so Luke ending up beating the guy's car."

"Oh, Luke," Rory half-groaned.

"So now I had to bail him out and the nephew is coming," she ended it.

"But why does the nephew need to come?" She asked. "I mean, he'll be bailed out."

"I don't know," she probably shook her head. "I guess to make sure he doesn't beat up any more cars?"

Rory smiled to herself. "I can't believe Luke beat up a car."

They laughed together for a moment before Lorelai realized something. "Hey, you called me."

"No, you did, remember?" Rory laughed.

"Not this time," she said. "Earlier. Much earlier than usual check-in time."

"Oh yeah, I did," she tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Any reason for it or...?"

"Mom..."

"Yes?"

"I slept with him."

"Excuse me I don't think I heard you right," Lorelai said.

Rory covered her mouth so only the phone could hear. "I slept with him."

"Him who?" She wondered then gasped. "Rory!"

"I know," she said. "Paris already read me the riot act."

"Paris knows?" She asked.

Rory nodded. "She caught me coming in."

"So you stayed in his hotel room," Lorelai said slowly. "You stayed in his hotel room and you slept with him and you've known him for how long now?"

"Three days," Rory answered, almost wishing she didn't.

"Three days," Lorelai repeated. "And you slept with him."

"Yes," she said.

Her mother sighed. "Were you safe?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"No regrets?"

"No."

"Well," Lorelai let out another sigh. "I'm just a little speechless right now."

"Just say anything," Rory urged. "Even if you don't approve, tell me."

"You're nineteen," she said. "If I don't approve, it doesn't matter."

"It matters to me," she told her. "Just tell me, mom."

"Its not that I don't approve, per se," Lorelai admitted. "Its just...you barely know the guy and its spring break."

"I feel like I know him," she confessed. "I don't know. Its something about him. I feel this connection to him, like I've known him for years."

"Still, its only been three days," Lorelai replied. "I don't want you hurt, sweets, and this is the vacation of all student vacations we're talking about."

"I know what it is," Rory leaned back in her chair. She hoped no other fellow coffee drinkers listened. "It, it just doesn't feel like a random hookup."

"Okay," she sighed. "I trust you, honey and I don't think you'd fall for any cheap lines or bad moves or whatever else there is. I just want you to be careful, okay?"

"I know," Rory smiled. "And it'll be fine. I'm going to go see him later, actually."

"Tell me how it goes," Lorelai said then paused. "Unless something happens. Don't tell me that."

She blushed a dark shade of red. "I promise."

"Love you, sweets," she said.

"Love you, too, mom," Rory replied and they hung up.

...

Jess got out of his car and walked into the small diner. He was starving and after hours on the road and how he hadn't eaten breakfast this morning before he packed, he needed a burger.

It wasn't long before he was seated and he ordered coke and a plain burger. The waitress flirted with him but he didn't flirt back. His thoughts went back and forth to what was waiting in this Stars Hollow versus Rory.

He hated that he had to leave her. On the phone, he told this Lorelai Gilmore that he'd be coming down to help out Luke. Luke hadn't asked but he knew enough of what was going on with his uncle and with the arrest on top of it, he needed help.

Luke had always been there for Jess. He visited not only on holidays but every month he closed down the diner and drove to New York. It was Luke that was the reason Liz hadn't screwed him up. Luke had even tried to get his sister help. Jess couldn't help but feel he owed the guy.

He stared at his phone. He could call Luke, he thought. Tell him himself that he's coming down but he was also sure Lorelai had told him.

The thing he wanted most to do was call Rory. He cursed himself for not trading numbers with her. He had no way to contact her other than he knew she actually lived in Connecticut. He was glad that was the state he was headed for but he also had no clue where in the state she lived. He didn't even know if she was in college. That'd at least narrow it down some.

The waitress returned with his burger and soda. He gratefully took it, glad to have real food. It was the problem wth a long road trip, more time on the road than you'd want especially if you're alone.

Jess had wished he asked Rory to come with him. The reason he didn't was because maybe it was too soon to test their tolerance for each other with a road trip. But he missed her, he admitted to himself. It had only been a few days and the previous night had been amazing. He had never met anyone like her.

He ate his food in silence and paid as fast as he could. The waitress slipped him her phone number but Jess waited until he was outside to throw it out. He knew he wouldn't use it and the chances he'd ever be here again were slim.

Once he got back into his car, he headed right back onto the road with a few more snacks out of machines. The plan was to get to Stars Hollow and he hoped to only stop when necessary.

...

"I don't want to seem too eager!" Rory exclaimed at Madeline and Louise. They were seated in lounge chairs down near the water. The breeze felt nice and there was a cooler beside them.

Paris replied under her breath. "You had no problem with seeming too eager last night."

The brunette glared at her friend. "Since when do you comment on my love life, Paris?"

"Since I know you have one," she answered.

"I had one before," she defended. "Dean, remember?"

"Please," Paris snickered. "You two were as chaste as parents on tv in the 50's. Separate beds and all."

"You never slept with Dean?" Madeline asked.

Louise gasped. "So your first time, it was a spring break hookup?"

"Gee, a little louder," she murmered.

Louise opened her mouth and Madeline covered it. "I don't think she actually meant it."

"When are you going to see him again?" Louise asked when her mouth was uncovered.

"I don't know," Rory said. "I was gonna stop by his room later."

"Were you?" Madeline asked mischievously.

"Not for that!" She flushed. "Well..."

"Mary is so definitely not Mary," Paris said into her cup.

"Finally!" Louise smiled brightly. "What was it like?"

"You know what its like," Rory told her.

"Not with him," she shook her head. "He looked like he knew a thing or two."

Rory flushed even more and Madeline's jaw dropped. "He did know a thing or two."

"Details," Louise requested.

"No, thank you," Rory said. "I'm not going into detail."

"Come on!" Louise pouted. "We'll tell you about our experiences."

"The difference is no one wants to hear them, Louise," Paris said.

"And I'm sure people are banging down the door for professor antidotes?" She countered.

"She may not be Mary anymore but she's not suddenly you, either," Paris said.

"Ouch," Madeline pretended to be zapped.

"Whatever," Louise walked out of her chair and away.

"Paris," Rory said.

"I know," she got out of her seat and followed the path Louise took.

"So..." Madeline said to Rory now that they were alone.

"I'm not giving details!" She exclaimed.

A half hour later, she found herself walking back to the hotel. She excused herself while Madeline and Louise glanced knowingly at her. Louise and Paris seemed better after they talked, at least.

Rory took a deep breath as she stood outside the door of the room that she had woke up in this morning. She knocked a couple of times before the door swung open. It wasn't Jess.

"I remember you," the guy in front of her stated.

"You were in the band, right?" She asked. "Caleb, was it?"

Caleb laughed. "I'm actually surprised you remember. You and Jess were kind of in your own world."

"Yeah," she hoped her blush didn't show. "Is he here, actually? I was hoping to find him."

"Nah, he's gone," he told her.

"What?" She froze.

"Jess is gone," Caleb explained. "Left hours ago."

"Well, where did he go?" She asked, a fear stuck in her throat that Paris and her mother had been right.

"Up north," he shrugged. "To some place I never heard of."

Rory felt defeated. "Oh. Did he say anything or...?"

"I don't think so," Caleb replied. "If I find anything, I'll let you know."

"Thanks," she nodded and waved as she backed out of the room and headed back for hers.

Once back in her own hotel room, Rory say in silence as she tried her best to not cry about this.

 **A/N: I hope you like this! This chapter was actually originally with more Jess. But then I decided to spilt it because the next time you see Jess, he will be in Stars Hollow and the drive is long. It made good sense to separate it I think. And this is also good news! I have a nice chunk of chapter three already started! I hope its worth the long wait :)**


	3. There's another one?

The car stopped in front of a diner in a very small town a whole day later. The sign above the door read William's Hardware. Jess was confused as he grabbed his bag and got out of the car - wasn't it a diner?

He wasn't sure he remembered ever coming here before. Actually, he was pretty damn confident he never had. Liz had never exactly talked much of her old home town. There was the occasional visits from Luke but that was it of family.

"Excuse me," someone said and broke Jess out of his thoughts.

He turned to see an older man, gray hair and beard, more to the big side and wearing a gray sweater. "Yes?"

"I don't recognize you, young man," he said. "And I recognize everyone here."

"I'm new," he shrugged.

"Passing through?" The older man asked.

"Maybe," Jess replied. He wanted to know what exactly this man was getting at.

The older man didn't seem to like his answers. "Well, what is your business here, young man?"

"I'm here to see my uncle," he answered honestly.

"Uncle? But who -?" He trailed off when he realized they were standing in front of Luke's diner. "Oh, no."

Jess smirked when he saw the terror on the man's face. "Oh, yes."

"There's another one?" He whispered to himself.

As if on cue, Luke walked away out of the diner with a grin on his face. "Jess."

"Hey, uncle Luke," he smirked.

"I told you not to call me that," Luke pointed his finger at his nephew.

"Dear lord," Taylor whispered to himself. "I have to tell Patty."

He left in quite a hurry headed towards a barn. Jess gave his uncle a questioning look. "Who's that?"

"That would be Taylor Doose," he said. "Trust me, you'll learn who he is."

"Huh," he nodded. "And who's Patty?"

"Patty..." He sighed. "You will definitely know. As a matter of fact, she'll probably be here in five minutes because not only is she a gossip but the idea of a new male in town will make her curious."

They began their walk into the diner and literally everyone stared when the two of them entered. Luke made a motion toward the curtain. "Follow me."

Jess did as he was told and discovered a set of stairs leading up behind the curtain. The door said it was an office but really it looked like an apartment.

"It used to be smaller," Luke explained. "A couple of years ago, I expanded it."

"Huh," he just nodded as he looked around. It was a nice apartment.

"It was my dad's office," he went on. "Didn't seem big enough to live in anymore. I'm glad I did it though considering, well, you're here."

"I don't know how long I'm here," Jess turned to him and out his bag down.

"Right," Luke agreed. "You have work."

"Among other things," he agreed.

"Like what?" He asked. "Did Columbia work out after all?"

"No, it didn't," he shuffled his feet. "You know Mom. And you know how I am with school."

Luke's face fell. "Oh. Well I hoped -"

Jess shook his head. "No biggie. Don't worry about it."

"Okay," he said and showed him an empty part of the room. "This is where you can stay. I haven't had time to get you anything yet but -"

"That's fine," he shrugged. "I can adjust."

"You sure?" The older man asked.

"Yeah," he said. "Look, I'm not gonna be here long. No use in setting me up with a bed and shit to put my stuff in, right?"

"You're probably right," he agreed.

"Is there a bathroom up here?" Jess asked.

"Yeah, over there," Luke pointed. Jess nodded and walked in the direction he pointed.

Luke walked into the kitchen and looked into the fridge to see what he had. It wasn't much so he'd have to shop a little. He checked the cabinets too and began a mental list of things to buy.

The door of the apartment opened and he turned around, expecting to see the back of Jess' head but instead saw Lorelai Gilmore.

"Is he here?" Was the first thing out of her mouth.

"Yes, he is," he half-hissed. "And keep your voice down."

"Patty said Taylor saw you with a rebellious young man in a leather jacket," she said. "And Kirk said you came upstairs with him."

"This town," he muttered.

"Can I meet him?" Lorelai asked.

"Don't be so Lorelai with him," he warned.

"What does that mean?" She asked. "Lorelai is a delight."

"You know what it means," he said.

She pouted just as Jess walked back into the room. He froze when he saw a new person standing in the room. "Hi."

"Are you Jess?" She asked. "I'm Lorelai aka the woman from the phone."

"Oh," recognition flashed over his face. "Sorry. I didn't know."

"That's okay," she waved it off. "You just got here?"

"Yeah, few minutes ago," he said. It felt weird for Jess to make small talk especially with someone he barely knew.

"Well, I hope you like it here," she said. "People here have their quirks, yours truly included. But its nice."

He smiled slightly at that. "I kinda figured that part out."

She laughed but continued. "And you know, if you're here a little bit, maybe you'll get to meet my daughter. She's about your age, too."

"Sounds good." He had no interest in being set up, he thought to himself as his mind flashed back to Florida and Rory. He hated leaving her behind but he hoped Caleb gave her his message. "I'm gonna go out for a bit, okay? Stretch my legs after the drive."

"Okay, Jess, have fun," Jess raised his eyebrows at that and Luke amended his sentence. "Or just not be drawn into the crazy."

"I'll be back," he said and walked out the door.

Lorelai turned to Luke. "So that was the nephew."

"That was the nephew," he echoed. "He's just gonna be staying here for a few days."

"Can I ask why without sounding rude?" She asked with a laugh.

"I needed help at the diner for a little," he said. "This whole divorce is taking a toll and it seemed to make sense to have family come help."

"Well, what about his mom?" She wondered.

Luke took a breath. "Liz is...Liz. I don't know any other way to put it."

She crossed her arms. "I've never heard you talk about your sister before."

"Because there's not much to tell," he said. "And it was only recently she put her life together. She met this guy named TJ and I guess he's good for her."

"Well, good," Lorelai agreed. "Guys can be...guys can be good."

"What's that tone?" He wondered. "Is something wrong?"

"Not exactly wrong," she shook her head. "Rory met a guy. On spring break of all times. I'm just worried."

"She'll be fine," he told her. "Rory is a smart girl. She'll be okay."

"I hope so," she sighed. "But in the meantime, instead of thinking of how much my baby is growing up, can you get me coffee?"

"Always with the coffee," he said as he led her back down to the diner.

...

"You need to stop moping," Paris instructed.

"I am not moping," Rory crossed her arms as they waited on line to get lunch.

Paris half-glared at her. "Yes, you are. Come on, its not the first time a guy tricked a girl into sleeping with him."

"Ssh," she hushed her and looked around to see if anyone was listening. "And it is for me. It didn't feel like a trick. I feel like such an idiot."

"Youre not an idiot, Gilmore," she sighed. "The guy was cute and you talked to him about books. Of course you would fall for him."

"He was different," Rory said. "He didn't say stuff about books just because I like books. He obviously cared about them, too."

"So maybe he's a trickster who reads," Paris shrugged as they moved up the line.

Rory shook her head. "I felt something. I could have sworn he did, too."

The blonde faced her and turned her back to the stand. "If he felt something, why did he leave especially so soon after what happened?"

She bit her lip. Rory didn't know the truth. She didn't want to believe it was just about a one-night stand. It felt like more than a one-night stand. She sighed, defeated. "I don't know."

The guy called for them and asked what they wanted. Paris ordered them pizza and corn dogs with a couple of sodas. They took their food and headed back to the hotel to eat.

"What do you want to do?" Paris asked.

"I kinda wanted to pack my stuff and go home," Rory confessed.

"What?" She put the food down and stood in front of her friend. "You are not going home because of a guy, Rory Gilmore. I don't care what happened. You are not leaving because of that."

"I'm not really in a festive mood," she said. "This was supposed to be fun, a break. What fun am I having if I keep thinking about how stupid I was to fall for this guy?"

Her eyebrow raised, surprised. "You fell for him?"

Rory looked down at her feet than back up. "I think so."

"Okay, new plan," Paris said. "We are having fun. You are Rory Gilmore. You are your mother's daughter. We are going to have the greatest spring break we can have, okay?"

She stared at her. "Who are you and what have you done to Paris Gellar?"

"She saw her best friend having a hard time and decided to step up," she shrugged as if it was no big deal.

"Thanks, Paris," Rory smiled.

"Now, come on," she said. "Eat. Then we are finding Madeline and Louise and we are gonna have fun."

"What about Janet and Glenn?" Rory asked. "We did come with them."

"I haven't seen Glenn since he went to get that hot dog," Paris remarked.

"Yeah, that's true," she nodded.

"What'll it be?" She asked. "Mope over this guy you're never going to see again or join the rest of the college students on spring break?"

Rory smiled.

...

Jess paced back and forth on a bridge he found. He was on his newly acquired cell phone and deep in conversation with Caleb. "So she came by?"

"Yes," his friend replied. "She seemed very surprised you were gone."

"That was why I left you a note to give her," Jess said.

"What note?" Caleb asked. "I didn't find any note."

"I left it on the table," he groaned. "With a note to you telling you to give her it."

"Uh..." He said and there were loud noises on the other end as he searched through stuff.

Jess counted to ten and tapped his foot. "Anything?"

"Nope," he said. "You sure you left one?"

"I distinctly remember writing a note about how I was coming to a town called Stars Hollow," he said. "And how if I wasn't back by the time she left, maybe we could meet up here because she lives in Connecticut."

"I got nothing," Caleb replied.

Jess groaned. "Damn it. She's gonna think I just left."

"So find her," his friend replied.

"Gee, why didn't I think of that?" He said sarcastically. "We never traded numbers and I have no idea where in this state she lives."

"Want me to find her?" Caleb wondered. "She's still here. In fact, I think I see her now."

"Seriously?" Jess wondered. That'd be too good to be true. "But what could you say?"

"I could tell her you want to talk to her," he suggested.

"Go find her then," he urged.

He waited a few moments as there was footsteps sounding on the other end. There was also music in the direction he headed and it made him wonder if Rory was at a party.

"Hey," he heard Caleb say. "Me again."

"Yes?" Rory said.

"I have to tell you something," he said. "Its actually Jess who -"

"No," she said. "I don't want to hear it."

"But he -"

"No."

He could tell she was gone just from the silence. Caleb must have put his phone back up to his ear. "Sorry, man."

"I heard," Jess sighed. "Listen, you gotta tell her for me."

"I could try but I don't think she'll let me," he explained.

"Come on," he urged. "Even if I never get see her again, I don't want her think I used her, okay?"

"I'll try," Caleb promised. "But no definites that she'll let me."

"Okay," Jess said. "And look for that note."

"Got it," he said and hung up.

Jess sighed to himself and whispered, "He better not fuck this up worse."

...

"Rory," a voice behind her said.

She turned around and looked at Caleb. "You again. What now?"

"Its about Jess," he tried.

"I don't want to talk about him," she shook her head.

"He didn't mean to leave," he continued even as she began to walk away. "He says he left a note."

"Uh-huh," she nodded but didn't turn around. "I'm sure he did."

"He did," he insisted.

"Then where is it?" She spun on her heels at him. "Where is this mysterious letter he supposedly left me?"

"I...haven't found it yet," he faltered.

"Its fine," she waved it off. "It was fun. Tell him thanks."

"Um..." He looked surprised if she was being honest with herself. "Okay."

Rory began to walk away but she stopped and turned back to him, quickly walking. She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him. When she pulled away, she said, "You can tell him about that, too."

She was gone before he said another word. Rory made her way back to Paris, Madeline and Louise and they sat jaw-dropped at her. "Did we just see you kiss that cute guy?"

"Yes, you did," Rory told them. "No tricks on the eyes here, ladies."

Louise let out a whoops that Paris winced about and Madeline joined in. They cheered their cups together as the blonde who wasn't Paris toasted, "To Rory getting her groove back."

"To Rory," Madeline repeated.

Rory smiled slightly at them and drank from her cup. Maybe she really could let them believe she's okay. Better than that, maybe she actually could be okay. Her smile grew as she began to think of this trip. Maybe it really will get better.

 **A/N: Sorry to end it there! But remember they're slightly different personalities so if its not something show Rory or show Jess would do, its on purpose. I would also like to note that because Jess never moved to Stars Hollow in season two, there is changes to his back story. The story will get into those as well :)**

 **This was actually half-written before I posted chapter two so I hope you like it. It will move from Spring Break though so I'm not gonna extend the trip lol Besides, they need to find out about the Luke connection, don't they? Stay tuned!**


	4. Surprise, surprise

**A/N: This chapter skips ahead a little, only a week. I'm not sure how I feel about it. It feels almost rushed in a way but at the same time I wanted to move the story along too. And I'm never sure of my writing of Paris. I feel I can never do her awesomeness justice.**

"The whole town smells like eggs," Jess groaned to Luke as he attempted to hold his nose.

Luke rolled his eyes. "It's not that bad."

"I see flowers wilting," he pointed out the glass window of the diner.

"Maybe it is that bad," Luke agreed. "But what can we do? There's rotting eggs somewhere out there."

"Its all my fault," Kirk muttered. "I hid the eggs."

"He's got a point," Jess said.

"Do you remember where you hid them, Kirk?" Luke asked as he now stood in front of him.

Kirk shook his head. "I had a map. A well drawn out map. But I veered off course. Taylor's going to be so disappointed in me."

"Taylor?" Luke asked. "You're gonna need to worry about you if this smell doesn't go away."

"Oh, no," he sighed, now looking very sick. "Mother will be disappointed, too."

Jess rolled his eyes. "We need to do something about this, Uncle Luke."

"Like what?" He shrugged his shoulders.

"What if we find them?" He whispered.

"Find what?"

"Find the eggs."

"Find the eggs."

"Yes."

"How?" Luke questioned. "And why?"

"Because have you smelt that?" Jess retorted. "We need to do something about it."

Luke sighed. "Maybe we can try to search Kirk's hiding spots."

Jess raised his eyebrow. "You know his hiding spot?"

"I've lived in this town a long time," he answered. "You learn a lot of things you don't want to know."

He nodded. "Ah. That makes sense."

"It's my fault," Kirk muttered and both Danes men turned to look over at him.

"Sooner rather than later, too," Luke added.

...

Rory threw clothes into her bag from her closet. It had now been a week since Spring Break and she'd avoided Friday Night Dinner one week and wasn't sure she could do it again.

Conversations with her mother had been short. Mostly, Lorelai liked to inform her of the news of the town and lately that involved Luke's mysterious nephew. She didn't care for hearing about the nephew. Whenever Lorelai had began to mention him, Rory cut her off and changed the subject or claimed she had work to.

Now, however, she was going home. Rory was sure to be bombarded with face to face questions and observations about Spring Break. She didn't want to talk much about it, especially not the part that involved her romantic life.

Paris walked into the room. "You heading home soon?"

"Yep," Rory nodded. "Just have a few things left to pack and then I'm off."

"Why do you not look excited?" Paris crossed her arms over her chest.

The brunette sighed and faced her friend. "Because I'm not really sure I want to go deal with my mom trying to set me up with Luke's mysterious nephew."

Her eyebrows raised. "Lorelai is trying to set you up with someone?"

"Not exactly," she said. "It's more implied. She always brings him up and I know its news back home but...I just really don't want to hear about this new guy."

"Because of Jess?" She asked.

Rory bit her lip then nodded. "He invades my thoughts sometimes."

"Uh-huh," Paris nodded, interested.

"The other day I was in class and all of a sudden I couldn't remember what class it was because I was thinking about how it felt when we were dancing."

"Are there...other times too?" She wondered. "Like night thoughts?"

Rory glared. "Are you asking if I've had sex dreams about him?"

"Its healthy to talk about this stuff," she argued. "You won't get over him unless you talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it," she replied. "I just want to move on and be done with it."

"Are you?" Paris found herself asking.

"I don't know," she sighed. "It hasn't been very long."

Paris nodded but didn't move from her spot. "Maybe going home will do some good. Reevaluate."

"Movie binge with my mom on junk food," Rory smiled.

Her friend smiled back. "That, too."

She finished the last of her packing and closed the bag. "Have a good time with...Professor Fleming."

"I told you that you can call him Asher," she replied.

"No," Rory shook her head. "He's still my professor. I'd prefer to call him that."

"Suit yourself," Paris crossed her legs.

Rory smiled at her, glad to have a change of topic before she left. She grabbed her bag and her keys. "See you, Paris."

"See you."

...

Rory casually drove down to Stars Hollow. The roads weren't full of cars and she got there pretty quickly. First, she headed to her mother's house and noted that the Jeep was in the driveway but her mother apparently was not home. She put her bag in the house and headed for the place it was most likely Lorelai would be.

She walked to Luke's, happy for the first time in days it seemed. Rory was glad to see her mom. Last week she had been on Spring Break still that she hadn't been able to fly back immediately for Friday Night Dinner.

Emily was surprisingly understanding about it. She said a young girl such as her granddaughter should have fun every once in a while - as long as it was appropriate fun. Rory his her expression as she thought of just what happened in Florida.

The diner was almost within touching distance and she breathed a sigh of relief. Whenever she came to town, she felt like she found what she had been missing. But when she came to Luke's, she felt like she was home.

The bell above the door chimed and she walked into the doorway. What she met with knocked her breath out of her throat. Rory froze, seeing the familiar dark hair. She glanced down at him, her eyes scanned his body as much as she could before he turned around.

It couldn't be, she thought. No, how was it possible? Part of her mind told her she was imagining the similarities. Another part of her mind screamed what the hell is he doing here.

The dark haired man turned around and she felt her heart stop. It was Jess. He stared at her in shock and probably mirrored the expression on her own face. Neither moved, too stunned to say or do anything.

It seemed neither of them needed to. The door chimed behind Rory and she heard a squeal of happiness. Lorelai hugged her daughter tightly as she said, "You're here! You made it!"

Rory broke out of her stare and hugged her mother back. She laughed at Lorelai's excitement and tried to sound as normal as she could. "I couldn't let you go through another week at dinner without me, right?"

"The gods have descended down to bless you, my child," Lorelai smiled as she pulled out of the hug.

Jess watched with intense curiosity. He had expected to never see Rory again. Yet here was, standing in front of him, at his uncle's diner in some unknown town. And she had hugged his uncle's close friend and best customer.

Lorelai walked them both further into the diner and she stopped when she saw Jess. "Hey, Jess. I have someone I want you to meet."

Rory's eyes pleaded with him not to say anything. She wondered why he looked as surprised as she did. This was her town. He was a New Yorker. What was he doing here?

Jess shook his head once to shake out of his trance. Lorelai didn't seem to notice the awkwardness between the two nineteen year olds and continued. "Jess, this is my daughter, Rory. Rory, this is Luke's infamous nephew, Jess."

 _The nephew!_

 _Her daughter!_

Their minds screamed almost in unison. Rory felt her face pale as she considered everything her mother had told her about likes nephew. Now that she thought about it, Lorelai had said things to her that could describe Jess.

He responded first as he stepped slightly forward. "Hi."

She nodded. "Hi. Nice to finally meet the nephew."

"Nice to finally meet the daughter," he said.

Lorelai between the two of them then kept her gaze on Jess as she asked for coffee and a donut. Rory sits with her, her own coffee untouched as she watched Jess work. He took orders and brought out food as if he'd been doing it for years.

How had she not let her mother talk about him? If only she didn't change subjects or claim some kind of homework, she thought. If she had just heard his name. Rory wouldn't be in this mess right now. She wouldn't have stood there frozen as the guy she'd slept with over spring break then left the next day wiped the counter at Luke's diner.

When she finally managed to finish her coffee, Rory turned to her mother and said she had some work to do before they got ready for dinner. Lorelai accepted this and kissed her daughter's cheek goodbye.

Jess watched as Rory left the diner and not too long after, told Cesar he was taking a break. He was thankful Luke wasn't around right now due to drama with Nicole.

Once outside, Jess thought of the problem. He didn't know where Rory would go. He didn't know where she would go when upset or when she was happy. This town was a mystery and even more than that, Rory in this town was a mystery.

Instead, he headed to the bridge to brainstorm. Maybe he would go through all of his conversations with her and try to narrow it by her interests.

Jess froze for the second time in an hour when he saw someone sat the bridge already. Her brown hair was swept off to one side and she stared down into the water. Her shoes were on the bridge beside her and her jeans were rolled up toe ankle as she dipped her feet in.

With a deep breath, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and walked forward. She made no reaction to show whether she heard him or not. "We should talk."

Rory's head lifted at his words and stared at his face. "Yeah, we should."

He didn't sit down. Instead he stood there and looked at her and wondered what twist of fate sent him to a town where she lived. Was it luck? Or was it some sick joke?

"I have some questions," Rory said with her face back towards the water but now stared ahead instead of down.

He nodded. "I'd be surprised if you didn't."

She turned back to him. "Luke's your uncle?"

"Yeah," another nod. "His sister is my mom. He practically raised me."

"Me, too," she said and a smile flitted on her face as she thought of Luke. It faded just as soon as it had appeared however when she spoke again. "And you didn't think to tell me you had family in Connecticut when I said I lived here?"

"Honestly?" He asked. "No. Because I didn't think - what are the chances that he lived in the same place as you?"

"I don't live here anymore," she said.

His eyebrow raised. "Oh?"

"How did you not know I was the daughter?" She wondered. "I mean, my mom, she would say Rory. You must have connected it. Unless...you forgot my name. That's got to be it because there's probably so many girls you lost track so you forgot my name -"

"Rory," he said and she turned to him again. "I didn't forget your name."

She shook her head in disbelief. "Then how?"

"I haven't exactly seen your mother that much," he answered. "And when I did, she's either asking for coffee or talking about some French guy. Occasionally she brought up having a daughter about my age but it seemed like some kind of set-up so I'd shrug my way out of the conversation."

"Some set-up when you've already slept with the other person," she scoffed.

"I didn't know," he said. "Rory, let me explain everything."

"Hmm," she made a sound. "Explain. Yes, explain why you left."

Jess stared at her face as she stared up at him. "I didn't choose to leave."

Another scoff. "Great starter. You know what? I don't want to know what it is, Jess."

Rory stood up and moved to walk past him but he reached for her arm. She stopped walking. "Luke called me from jail. He needed help. I couldn't do nothing."

"You called my mom to bail him out," she finished for him and he nodded. "I don't see why you had to leave - without a goodbye I might add - when someone else was taking care of it."

"You don't understand," Jess shook his head.

"Then explain it," she said then lowered her voice. "Explain to me why I was in this afterglow after you and me - then I find out you left. And your friend keeps telling me about some note."

"He found the note?" He asked.

She laughed. "Jess, I know there's no note."

"There was a note," he said. "I left it for Caleb with a note of his own to give it to you."

"Okay say there is a note," she followed. "That still doesn't explain why you had to leave if Luke was taken care of."

"Luke is my closest relative," he began. "He's the reason I'm not some complete screw up."

Her anger eased for a moment. "But what about your parents? You're not close to them?"

"My mom, she has her own problems," he said hesitantly. "Sometimes its pot, sometimes its a new boyfriend. Sometimes that boyfriend turns into a husband."

"Oh," she whispered. "But what about your dad?"

Jess stuffed his hands back into his pockets. He wasn't even sure when he had taken them out in the first place or when he let go of Rory's arm. "Never met him."

"I'm sorry," she shuffled her feet. "My dad - I've met him but he's barely around. He has a new family now. A new wife and a new daughter. Its not the same but I get it a little."

He smiled at her despite himself and continued on with his explanation. "Luke helped out. He tried to get my mom help when she needed it. He made sure I was doing okay, that I was eating right. I owe Luke everything so when he called, it wasn't a question whether or not I'd come."

Her eyes lit in understanding. Rory knew better than anyone how Luke was. She couldn't fault him for that much. "But why write a note? You knew where I was. You knew my room number. Why not come tell me to my face if it was more than - more than that?"

"I couldn't," Jess shook his head.

"Why?" She half-cried. "Why couldn't you tell me to my face you were leaving?"

"Because!"

"Because what?" She asked. "I know we didn't know each that long but didn't I have the right to hear it from you?"

"You did," he said. "And I'm sorry. I messed up."

"Yeah, you did!" Rory replied. "God, Jess. Just tell me why."

He was silent, the words he wanted to say stuck on his tongue. The explanation in his mind consisted of things it was too soon to say. That he felt like there was this connection and that something between them just felt right.

"Jess," she pleaded.

He said the words in his head. How if he went to her room and he saw her face or looked into her blue eyes, he'd never have left. But Luke needed help. He needed help with the diner and to be able to deal with everything.

But one look at Rory and he'd have stayed in Florida and let down the one person who he couldn't let down. Now, as he stood on the old bridge and looked at Rory in front of him, he realized his mistake. He ended up letting her down too.

"Fine," she huffed as she grabbed her shoes. "Don't tell me. I have to go."

"Rory, wait -"

"I have a family dinner tonight," she said as she walked away.

With that, she disappeared from his sight and left him standing there alone. Jess watched the path she took full of regret. This was what he wanted. He wanted a chance to see her again, to explain. Why couldn't he do it though?

For the first time since he arrived, he sat down. Jess reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. "Fuck."

...

Lorelai wasn't home yet when Rory got there. She grabbed her bag and headed to her room and took out a pen and paper. Quickly she started making a list of what Jess had told her versus the events of spring break. She sighed and put the pen down.

It wasn't long until Lorelai came home. She called out for Rory and told her that she was going to get ready for dinner.

As she headed up the stairs, she turned to her daughter cautiously. "Are you okay, hun?"

"Yeah," she smiled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't know," Lorelai said. "Ever since we were in the diner, something seemed off."

"It was just the drive," she waved it off. "I'll be better at Grandma's, I promise."

"Okay," she smiled back at her daughter. "Love you, kid."

"Love you, too, mom," she smiled as her mother disappeared up the stairs.

Rory rushed back to her room and his the notebook where she had made her list. It wasn't exactly a pro/con list but still not a list she wanted Lorelai to find. She pulled out a blue loose dress and a sweater and got ready for dinner when she was done.

 **A/N: What do you think? I hope you like it more than I do, buy I do like the Rory/Jess confrontation :)**

 **I'm also going to be changing the rating on the story now that it is no longer a one-shot in case a heads up was necessary :)**


	5. Explanations and apologies

**A/N: I'm again borrowing some episode dialogue! Like I said, I hope to keep canon moments on the fic even if Jess being there and them not having their history may change some things. I hope I do okay at mixing the old with the new :)**

 **Also, Dean is in this chapter so I need to make a note of this. He and Lindsey are not married. Dean and Rory broke up when she got accepted into Yale and Harvard, because like in the show, he didn't think they could make it with any distance. However, he did start dating Lindsey not long after the break-up though.**

Friday Night Dinner was very different than either Rory or Lorelai had expected. Not only was Jason there but his parents were as well. Carol and Floyd Stiles seemed nice enough, Rory thought, but her head wasn't in the right place for meeting anyone new.

Patiently she sat through drinks as Floyd and Richard talked about business topics, Emily and Carol swapped stories. Lorelai and Jason sat there as they watched their parents get along. She saw a twinkle in her mother's eye that maybe it was right to tell them soon.

She remembered hearing stories about summer camp, crater face and summer lovin'. Her mind was in a daze that not only was Jess in Stars Hollow but he was Luke Danes' nephew. His nephew. He was a blood relative of the man she'd known most of her life and practically raised her.

"Oh, I have wonderful pictures of Rory," Emily said and broke Rory out of her thoughts.

"Grandma, I'm right here," she said.

"But you're so big now," she chirped happily as she stood up to fetch the pictures.

Lorelai leaned close to her daughter. "Slouch down a little for Grandma."

She smiled a little at her mother and crossed her arms loosely. Emily returned and handed Carol a photo album. They flipped through pages and looked at photos. Rory's thoughts again betrayed her as they traveled back to Jess.

She wondered what he was doing right now. Was he working in the diner? Who else in town had he met? Did he meet Lane? How long would he be here for? Questions raced back and forth in her mind as she considered the idea of him staying in town or worse, leaving.

"I have to go," she whispered.

Lorelai heard her and turned to look over at her. "Did you say something, hun?"

"I just remembered I have a reading assignment," Rory said. It wasn't entirely a lie.

"Oh?" Emily asked sadly.

Rory shook her head once to push the fog. "I completely forgot. I'm so sorry, grandma."

"You sure you can't stay a little bit longer?" Emily asked.

"I should really get started," she answered.

Rory kissed her mom on the cheek and stood up to leave. She hugged Emily goodbye then went to find Richard who was deep in conversation with Jason and Floyd now. They said their goodbyes and she heard Emily's voice and Lorelai's answer as she reached the door.

"Do you have to leave too?"

"We came in separate cars."

She sighed in relief, glad she had suggested two cars tonight.

...

"I give up," Jess groaned as he held his nose.

"Give up?" Luke asked. "This was your idea to find the eggs!"

Jess nodded once. "It was and now I am giving up."

"What about the smell?" Luke asked him.

He turned to his uncle as he lowered himself down from the tree he currently searched. "I'll go back to New York."

"Nice," Luke said to him. "Leave me here with the smell."

Jess reached the ground and cleaned off his hands. "Hey, you were going to deal with it. Like you said, I suggested this."

"Just a little longer and if we don't find them, we give up," he countered.

"Fine," he sighed. "But I'm not climbing back up the tree."

Luke actually laughed. "That makes two of us."

Fifteen minutes later, Jess and Luke were back in the center of town. They didn't give up as they said they would.

...

Rory pulled into Stars Hollow slowly. It wasn't because she was driving cautiously. There was a whole different reason altogther and it had nothing to do with her previous thoughts either.

She smiled to herself as she saw Dean on the sidewalk. They'd hardly had the chance to talk since her meltdown months ago when she had to drop a class. The memory of it still let her with a sad feeling.

He noticed when she pulled her familiar silver car over. Her grandparents had replaced the car he had made her when it broke down on an out of town trip. Rory remembered the blue car fondly but also felt if she still had it now, it'd be weird since they had broken up.

Dean walked over to Rory as she closed the door. "Hey."

"Hey," she smiled. "I didn't expect to see you out here at night."

"I could say the same to you," he commented. "How you doing? You okay?"

"You mean since I broke into a crying mess in your arms?" She tried to joke. "I'm doing better."

"Good," he nodded.

"You?" She tried to change the subject.

"I'm dropping out of school," he said casually.

"What?" She asked surprised.

"I'm dropping out of school," Dean shrugged his shoulders. "Me and Lindsey are getting married, Rory."

Another shock. "What? You're nineteen."

He nodded. "I love her."

"Wow," she was stunned to say the least. And the hits just keep on coming, she thought. "I don't see what that has to do with school, though."

"We need money," he replied.

Rory made a confused face. "Won't her parents pay for the wedding?"

"Not for the wedding," he let out a laugh. "For a house."

"Wait," she said. "You're getting married now?"

"In a couple of months," he told her. "We're hoping."

"That's..." Rory was at a loss for words. "Fast."

"Gee, don't sound so happy," he said.

"I am!" She defended. "I want you to be happy, Dean. You deserve to be happy. Its just...it's soon."

"Yes it is because we love each other and we want to be married," Dean retorted.

It was obvious she got him upset. She didn't want to make him mad. Rory had seen Dean mad. Flashes of the Chilton dance or rehearsing with Tristan for Romeo and Juliet came to mind. "I'm sorry. I just want you to be sure."

"I'm sure," he calmed.

"Good," she tried to smile. "Congratulations, Dean. I mean it."

"Thank you," he nodded.

With another smile, Dean set back off in the direction he had been walking in. Rory walked back towards her car and it didn't escape her gaze that Jess stood by the gazebo with Luke. The only difference between the two men was that one stared at her.

She found herself staring back. Quickly, she got back into her car and drove off towards the Crap Shack.

Rory was barely home five minutes before there was a knock on the door. She hauled herself off of her bed and out of her room, to the front door. A surprise awaited her on the other side. "What are you doing here, Jess?"

"You know, I've been here a week," he started. "Yet I've never been to your house."

"Well, now you have," she said and was about to close the door.

Jess put his hand flat on the door. "Rory, wait. We need to talk."

"We talked earlier," she said and hoped her hurt didn't come out in her voice.

"No," he shook his head. "Come on, please."

"Okay," she sighed and held the door open for Jess to enter.

His eyes searched around the living room as he walked in. Rory suddenly felt self-conscious as she watched him. Why did he make her more nervous than anyone else had?

"You know, I imagined this," she started. "Probably a hundred different scenarios. What would Jess say to me if I ever saw him again? You just took off, no word. How could he explain that and just letting me wonder what I did wrong?"

"You did nothing wrong," he shook his head.

"If you're not gonna tell me why you couldn't tell me to my face you were leaving," she said. "Then we don't have much to talk about, do we?"

"That's why I'm here," Jess explained. "You asked and I didn't answer. I'm sorry."

Rory crossed her arms. "I'm not looking for apologies. I want an explanation."

"I'm trying to do that," he said and she waited.

She nodded and uncrossed her arms. "Okay."

"The reason I didn't come tell you face to face I was leaving is..." He stopped and considered her reaction. Jess decided on the chances. "Because I would have stayed."

"What?" She asked.

"I'd have said Luke had help and your mom bailed him out and just stayed in Florida," he finished.

"Am I suppose to believe this?" She asked.

Now it was his turn to be surprised. "What?"

Rory exhaled. "Am I suppose to believe that the whole reason you wouldn't tell me you were leaving is because if you did, you wouldn't have left?"

"Its the truth," Jess replied. "Rory, what happened in Florida, it wasn't one-sided."

"Say that's true," she began.

He interrupted. "It is true."

Rory stared into his eyes. "Say its true...you felt something between us."

"I did."

"Jess."

He put his hands up to show he won't interrupt. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you," she whispered but rose her volume to continue. "Wouldn't you have wanted me to know? I spent over a week thinking I was wrong about you and whatever we felt. Do you know how that felt?"

"No," Jess shook his head. "I don't."

"I think we should pretend it didn't happen," Rory said.

He was stunned for the second time. "What?"

"My mom knows about you but I never told her your name," she explained. "We can just pretend it wasn't us in Florida. Only us know anyway, right?"

"Right," he agreed, not entirely sure he wanted to agree.

"Let's just be who we are," she went on. "You can be Luke's nephew, Jess Danes and I can be Lorelai's daughter, Rory Gilmore and nothing more."

"Mariano," he corrected.

"What's that?" She asked.

"My name," he said. "Its not Danes. Its Mariano."

"Oh," Rory held her arms over her chest but didn't completely cross them again. "I didn't -"

"Its my dad's name," Jess shrugged.

"I thought you didn't know your dad," she wondered.

"Didn't seem to stop my mom from giving me his last name," he replied.

Rory was silent for just a moment. "I am sorry about your dad."

"No reason to be," he gave another shrug. "Guy's a deadbeat from what I hear. I'm probably better off."

"Maybe," she said.

Jess was clearly uncomfortable with the switch in conversation to his dad. He stuffed his hands in his pocket to keep from making fists. "So...acquaintances, huh? No Florida connection."

Rory was momentarily confused then remembered what she had asked of him before they veered to the subject of his dad. "Yeah. Is that okay?"

"Its fine," he said expressionlessly. "You go back to your life and I go back to mine. Its fine."

He turned to leave and Rory instantly felt guilty. "Jess, wait, I don't mean it like that."

"Don't worry about it," he looked back at her. "I won't say a word."

He was out the door before Rory could even process the look on his face as he disappeared. She considered following him but he was gone. She stood in the doorway and sighed before finally closing the door.

...

Jess made his way back to the diner. He had almost forgotten about the search for the eggs that he left Luke alone with. What reminded him was Kirk kneeling in the grass screaming, "I love you, Luke Danes!"

He smirked and rolled his eyes simultaneously as he listened to the screams. In his hand, Kirk had a bag of easter eggs. Some Jess recognized from the search, others seemed new.

I guess he found the rest, Jess thought.

He made his way into the diner and up the stairs to the apartment. Luke wasn't around but he looked into his part of the room. Since his arrival on Stars Hollow, Luke had bought him both a bed and a dresser for his clothes. Jess had insisted he didn't need it but his uncle was reluctant to listen.

He sighed to himself. On a shelf was few books that he had brought to Florida with him. Jess wandered over to them and looked through what items he did have here. It wasn't much. Maybe it was a sign, especially after what had happened at Lorelai's house.

The door opened and in walked Luke. He had a bag in his hand that showed he just picked something up from the store. He walked in curiously and put the bag down, looking at Jess. "You're back."

"I had something to take care of," he shrugged and walked away from his corner of the room.

"You said something like that," Luke commented. "Did you take care of what ever it was?"

"Yeah, I think so," he nodded.

Luke nodded in return. "Good. That's good."

"Hey, Uncle Luke?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I should head back to New York," he replied. Luke's face looked almost hurt as he considered his nephew's words. "I mean, I don't have a lot of stuff here. It makes sense. I have a job."

"Right," he agreed. "I shouldn't keep you, either. You should...get back, I mean."

"Yeah," Jess agreed. "Hey, um, will you do me a favor, no questions asked?"

"Sure," he said skeptically.

Jess grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled down something then handed it to Luke. "Give Rory this."

"Rory?" Luke asked. "You met her once, why would you -"

"No questions, remember?" Jess tried. He had to try.

"Okay," Luke said and took the paper out of Jess' hand. "No questions."

...

At almost ten pm, Rory began to wonder where her mother was. Her cell phone went straight to voicemail and she wondered if maybe Lorelai was out with Jason. She sat on her bed in her pajamas and heard a tapping noise on her window.

Rory stood up curiously, unsure who it would be. It definitely wouldn't be Lorelai, she knew. When she moved the curtain however, she saw an unexpected sight.

Opening her window, Rory got a better view of Jess. He had a duffel bag with him. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to say goodbye," he replied.

She closed her eyes then reopened them. "You're leaving? Really?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I have to get back to New York."

"Why now?" She asked. "Because of me?"

"Because I don't belong here," he said. "I don't live here. I have a job, Rory."

"Okay," she nodded. "Well, goodbye."

"Go see Luke tomorrow morning, all right?" He said and grabbed his bag.

"Luke? What does Luke have to do with us?" Rory asked.

"Just do it, okay?"

"Okay."

"Bye, Rory," he half-smiled. "It was nice to meet you."

"You too," she found herself smiling back despite herself.

And he was off into the darkness of the night. Rory sighed and watched out her window until she couldn't see him any longer. Tomorrow, she would find out where her mom is and what Luke held for her. It was gonna be a long night.


	6. A friendly gesture

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews! I'm glad you like the story and I'll make it worth it, I promise!**

 **And yes, "I love you, Luke Danes" is episode 4x18 after Kirk really did lose some of the easter eggs and Luke found them for him after the town began to smell it :)**

Rory couldn't sleep. She felt herself toss and turn even in her sleep that she would suddenly awake. Her conversation with Jess replayed in her mind ever since he walked away from her window.

Pretending Florida didn't happen seemed crazy. Even if she was able to push aside whatever she felt, it happened and it was a part of both of them. The regret she thought she would feel after he left never came and her mind was on what she missed.

She missed talking to him. In florida, conversations had come easy even though they did not know each other long. The connection really was there in some form of friendship at least. Rory wasn't completely sure of Jess' feelings or if she believed he'd have stayed in Florida for her but she knew she really liked talking to him.

With another groan, she readjusted herself in her bed and closed her eyes. She just needed to make it to Luke's. Her mother would be there in the morning, as promised via a short phone call. Lorelai's voice had sounded worried but promised they'd talk in the morning and explained she was at Jason's tonight.

It felt like another addition to the problem. Maybe problem was the wrong word. Situation fit better, Rory thought. She needed to talk to someone about this but her stubbornness had taken away talking with her mother. It would be better if she told lorelai. Right? No.

Because if she told Lorelai, Lorelai would tell Luke and she didn't really want her father figure to know she had sex with his nephew.

Another toss and her eyes opened. Rory let out a sigh and turned herself onto her stomach and smashed her face right side on the pillow. Only a few more hours to go.

When finally morning officially arrived, an appropriate time to go to Luke's diner, she got out of bed and searched for something to wear. She headed to the shower, sure her sleepless night was written all over her face.

As she ran a towel through her hair after her shower, Rory saw her mom pull up in the driveway. She smiled to herself as she waited for the front door to open.

Lorelai opened the door and shut it behind her. When she looked up, she finally noticed her daughter standing there. "You're up early."

"Its eight o'clock," Rory replied.

"Oh," Lorelai said and took off her heels.

"What happened?" She asked.

Lorelai walked into the kitchen and sighed. "Remember Floyd, Jason's dad?"

"The man I met at the rare manuscript dinner and last night at dinner, yes," she nodded.

"He is suing your grandmother," the older Gilmore stated.

Rory's eyes bugged. "What? He's suing grandpa? How? Why?"

Lorelai began a long description of what had happened at Friday Night Dinner after Rory had left. When she was finished, she said, "And I don't know what happened after because I went to Jason's after but it can't be good."

"How's grandpa?" Rory asked.

"I think he's in shock," Lorelai half-shrugged. "Definitely angry."

"Wow," she shook her head. "I didn't...dinner seemed like it was going fine."

"It was until it wasn't," she replied then began walking out of the kitchen. "I'm gonna go take a shower, kay, kid? Then we can head to Luke's?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "Sure."

Lorelai smiled at Rory then headed up the stairs. Rory went back to her room and put on the clothes that she had picked out. When she was dressed and ready, she sat at her desk and pulled out a blank page in a notebook.

Usually a pro/con list relaxed her. This time as she stared down at the categories she made, she didn't feel relaxed at all. 'Tell Mom about Florida' vs 'Don't' stared at her. She also wondered when she became someone who didn't want to tell her mom everything.

There was a knock on her door and she turned in her seat to see Lorelai on her doorway. "Is that homework?"

"Yeah," Rory nodded and shut the notebook. "I can finish it later."

Her mother looked at her curiously but agreed. "Okay. You ready?"

She nodded in a fast motion and they soon made their way out.

On the way there, Rory thought about how she'd approach Luke. She wasn't really sure how to bring it up or what Jess even wanted her to see him for.

It seemed that would come sooner rather than later when they ran into Luke on the street. "Hey."

Luke looked at the two of them, on their way to the diner, and replied. "Cesar's running the diner right now."

"But I like your food," Lorelai pouted.

"Cesar's will be fine," he said to her.

Lorelai pointed to his handful of papers. "What's that?"

"This is for my divorce," he waved the papers up. "I'm just headed to the post office now."

"You're getting a mail order divorce?" She asked stunned.

"Its the same papers from before," he told her. "I just have to get them signed."

"But this is Mail Boxes, etc," Lorelai said.

He didn't seem to get her point. "There's a notary in there."

She shook her head. "You get envelopes at Mail Boxes, etc. You don't get divorced."

"Well, I am," Luke replied.

"Oh, well," Lorelai changed directions to go with him. "I need stamps. I guess I'll come with you."

"Mom -" Rory spoke up for the first time since bumping into Luke.

She waved her hand at her. "Go order our food. I'll be right there, I promise."

"You sure?" She asked.

"Go ahead," Lorelai smiled.

"Lane is there now," Luke pointed out.

"Oh, good," she perked up. "I won't be alone, at least."

"Come on, I won't be that long," Lorelai half-whined, half-pleaded.

"Sure, you won't," Rory said as she walked in the direction of the diner and away from her mom and Luke.

"Why don't you go to a lawyer's office?" She heard her mom ask.

"I hate lawyers," Luke answered.

Her mother persisted. "How about at a friend's house?"

Rory shook her head in amusement as their voices faded the further they got. When she made it to the diner, she saw Lane bring a plate of pancakes to a table and sighed in relief as she opened the door. "Hey."

"Hey!" Lane beamed. "Luke has me working an early shift today so sit anywhere you want."

Rory agreed and sat at a table near the window closest to the park. "Cesar's cooking right?"

"Right," Lane nodded and her ponytail bounced with the movement.

"I will have a double order pancakes, chocolate chip the way Cesar does it when Luke isn't here," she said in an almost whisper. "And a side of double eggs and double bacon."

"Got it," Lane wrote it down. "I'm guessing your mom is coming or you're just feeling really hungry this morning?"

"Mom's coming," she replied.

Another nod from Lane. "Ah."

She went to give Cesar the order than cams back out into the dining area. Rory bit her lip in consideration, eyes flickering between Lane and out the door. She wondered how long she had before her mom would walk in.

"Hey, Lane?" She called when her friend passed.

"Yeah?"

"When are you free today?"

"Uh, I think soon, why?" She wondered.

Rory took a breath. "There's something I want to talk to you about, ask you."

Lane waited for more and when she didn't say anything else, she spoke. "Okay. I'll come get you when I get my break."

Not too long after, Lorelai rushed in the door with a small bag full of stamps. "Kirk should not work at Mail Boxes, etc."

...

"Todd, did you even buy food while I was gone?"

Jess sighed as he closed the fridge door closed and turned to his roommate. Todd shrugged. "I picked up food when I was out."

"Nice," he said. "Real nice. Now I got to go get food so we don't starve."

"Hey, man, you weren't here," Todd retorted. "I wasn't gonna shop for just me."

"I'm here now, aren't I?" He said.

"Yeah after you went with Caleb down to Florida then left for some unknown town," he exclaimed. "Thanks for the invite, by the way."

"You hate Caleb," Jess pointed out.

"So?" He shrugged. "I like spring break."

"You would have listened to his band then?" He challenged.

Todd laughed. "I'd have blocked out the sound while I had a good time."

Now Jess laughed. It amused him how his two friends were kind of rivals. "And scared all the girls who would want nothing to do with you?"

"They're not scared of me," he defended. "I'm an acquired taste."

"Uh-huh," he smirked. "Sure."

Todd crossed his arms. "What about you anyway? You find an unlucky girl who actually fell for your charms?"

Jess said nothing. Instead he focused on his shoes and worked to put them on. "I'm gonna go grab some lunch. You want any?"

"Oh, there was," he concluded. "Who was she? You get lucky?"

"You want pizza?" Jess asked.

"You did get lucky," Todd let out a laugh. "Come on, man. Is it that embarrassing?"

He turned on his heel to face Todd. "Maybe it turns out this girl is actually connected to my life somehow and she wants no reminder of what happened down there."

His friend quickly sobered up. "What did you do?"

"Luke got arrested so I left," he explained.

"Shit, man," he backed up. "Well, at least it was just a vacation hookup, right? Its not like you were actually looking for something with this girl."

Jess hid his thoughts from his expression. "Yeah. Right."

"Are you still getting that pizza?" Todd asked, suddenly hungry.

Grateful for the subject change, Jess nodded. "Yeah. Let's go."

...

Rory waited patiently at the same table she had sat in when she first entered. Lane hadn't been able to get enough of a break as the morning rush entered and her mother had gone off to work eventually.

She sat there and felt Luke's curiosity on the back of her head. He had to know something about why she was here. Jess asked her to go to Luke so he had to have some idea of why.

Finally, she stood up and walked to the counter. Luke glanced over at her in the corner of his eye as she sat down. "More coffee?"

"No," she shook her head. "Actually, I was wondering about something."

Luke moved over so he stood right across from her. His words were low but she understood. "Is this about Jess?"

"He told me to come see you," Rory confessed.

"What's all this about?" He asked. "You guys barely know each other."

"We talked a little bit before he left," she said, not leaving in the part where they talked in another state as well.

"Oh," he simply said. "You just talked? Well that's - that's good."

"Why?" She wondered, fear settled in. "Is there something I should know or -?"

"No, no, nothing like that," he waved his hands in front of himself. "Just I know my nephew. He doesn't really talk to many people."

Rory relaxed. "Oh."

Luke continued his explanation. "If Jess is talking to you, its a good thing. He's, I guess he's selective about who he hangs around."

"Like you?" She smiled.

"Like me," Luke smiled back then reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. "He gave me this to give to you."

"Oh," she repeated, surprised.

Rory took the paper from Luke's hands and unfolded it. "He wouldn't tell me why and made me promise to not look at it."

The paper crackled as it became unraveled. Rory read it in her mind and smiled as she understood what it meant. Luke waited for her to say something, anything. He was silent and so was she.

She noticed that she still hadn't said anything and looked up at Luke. Her smile was faded but her eyes were still lit up. "Thank you. For this."

"No problem," he replied.

Rory practically jumped put of her seat now that she knew why Jess wanted her see his uncle. She grabbed her stuff from the table that she had left.

"Rory," he called when she was almost to the door. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good," she nodded. "Bye."

"Bye," he said and she was out the door.

Lane came up beside him. "Something is going on."

"She tell you what?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No. Not yet."

Lane headed back to work and Luke pushed aside any worries he might have had and went back to work too

...

Jess was headed to Washington square park when his cell phone rang. It was from an unknown number but he picked it up anyway. "Hello?"

"I wouldn't have thrown it out if you gave it to me," Rory said.

He smiled despite himself. "You got the note."

"Giving me your phone number along with a note saying you thought it was less likely I'd throw it out if Luke gave it to me?" She mused. "Clever."

"I thought so," he sat down on a bench.

"Why did you think I'd get rid of it?" Rory asked.

"Because I didn't know how far the whole forget what happened between us goes," he sighed.

"Jess -" she started.

"No, its okay," he said. "I understand. I mean, it might get weird. My uncle is close friends with your mom. You're pretty close to him. If they find out, it might make things awkward."

"I've been thinking about it all day if I should tell my mom," she confessed.

He waited. "And?"

"And I don't know," she sighed. "My mom seems to like you. What if I tell her and she reacts badly? What if it really does make things awkward?"

"I don't know, either," Jess admitted.

"You didn't have to leave," she almost whispered. "You could have stayed and maybe we could be friends."

"My life's here, Rory," he closed his eyes then reopened them. "I didn't even have that much stuff there. I'd have had to come back anyway."

"So come back now," she said. "School's almost out. We could hang out during the summer. Do what we should have done before...before anything happened."

Jess heard the falter in her words and wondered where she was and who she might be with. Worse, he wondered if she was alone and unable to say the words. "Do you regret it?"

"No," she answered quickly. "I don't."

"Me, either," He replied.

"But we'll be friends," Rory suggested.

"We can be friends," he agreed. "That's what the phone number was. A friendly gesture."

"Good," she smiled. "Because in Florida, I really liked talking to you. And we're connected, in a way we didn't expect. I'd like us to be able to talk still."

"Me, too," Jess nodded.

"I'm glad," she said then there was silence and he thought she hung up but she came back again. "I got to go but we'll talk again, right?"

"Yeah," he looked down at his shoes. "We will."

"Good," she said again. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

He nodded, head back up again. "Okay. Bye, Rory."

"Bye, Jess."

And the line went dead. Jess stuffed his phone back into his jeans pocket and looked out at the people out in the park. They all looked so happy. It made him smile a little as he saw what was possible. He hoped he would get that too someday.

...

On Sunday night, Lane had suggested lunch with Rory to make up for not getting to talk. Rory seemed not as eager to talk about whatever the situation was. Lane, however, did notice she looked more relieved than she had the previous morning in the diner.

That night, Lorelai suggested a movie night where they watched The Godfather. They added any to all special features on the dvd to the movie night. Lorelai occasionally looked over at Rory and wondered what had relaxed her so much in the past day.

When movie night had ended, Rory gathered her stuff to leave. She apologized to her mother and explained how she needed to be there early because it was end of the year. Lorelai understood and let her go on her way back to Yale without any protest.

It was when Rory was halfway to New Haven when Lorelai walked into her daughter's room and noticed the left behind cell phone. She picked it up and made sure to keep it on the dresser. Tomorrow she would call Rory's dorm and tell her it was here.


	7. A little nervous

**Characters and Gilmore Girls belong to ASP and DP. Even some dialogue. Only the way Literati veers off is mine.**

 **PS - the last chapter I made the error of typing grandmother instead of grandfather when Lorelai tells Rory he's being sued. Its a bit of a pest to edit once its posted so I thought I'd clear that up :)**

"Hello?"

Rory raised her eyebrows suspiciously as she replied. "Who is this?"

"Lorelai Gilmore," the voice on the other end replied.

"No," Rory shook her head. "This is Lorelai Gilmore."

Lorelai laughed. "Ooh, gaslight."

Rory replied with, "You have my phone."

"You left it here when you left for school," she explained. "I was gonna tell you."

"But I beat you to it," Rory nodded.

"You know what this means," her mother said.

"No?"

"You miss mommy."

She considered that then replied. "Or I just forgot my phone."

"Uh-uh," Lorelai disagreed. "I think you miss me and you wanted an excuse to come back and see me."

"Maybe," she smiled at her mother's logic. "Just hold onto it for me? I'll get it next time I see you."

"Got it," she said seriously. "So what's up? How's school?"

Rory sighed. "Besides Paris and Janet still not getting along? Its good."

"Could it be as bad as my parents?" She asked.

The younger Gilmore grimaced. "How's the lawsuit?"

"I don't know, honestly," Lorelai told her. "They haven't exactly been chatty about the whole thing."

"What do you think is gonna happen?" Rory asked.

"They'll fight it," she answered. "You know your grandparents. They don't go down without a fight."

Rory smiled at that slightly. "Good. I wouldn't expect any less."

"Oh, wait, I have another call," Lorelai said and the phone went silent for a few seconds then she came back. "Its Jason."

"Call me later," Rory requested.

She could hear her mother's smile. "As you wish."

Rory hung up the phone and put it back down in the common area of her dorm. It was quiet right now, something she wasn't entirely used to anymore. Paris was always yelling about something or other but usually it was about Janet's boyfriend.

She sighed and went back to her room. On her desk, she saw the small piece of paper Luke had handed her at the diner. They has promised to be friends, hadn't they? It wouldn't be weird if she called then.

Before she could really register if she should or not, Rory dialed the number in front of her. Impatiently, she waited. If she was to have a friendship with Jess and put aside what happened between them, they'd need to talk to each other. It seemed silly to just expect them to get to the point she wanted so soon but still she hoped.

An automated voice came on and she hung up the phone. Either Jess was busy or he was ignoring her. Rory really hoped it wasn't the latter.

It seemed like everyone was moving forward in their lives. Her mom was with Jason, Paris and Asher, Lane had Hep Alien, even her grandparents were preparing to fight off Jason's father. She sighed, suddenly feeling how alone she was.

Hesitantly, she called a different number. One that despite their good terms lately, she hadn't called.

"Hello?" A voice asked.

Rory was relieved to reach someone. "Hi, Dean."

"Hi," he said. "What's going on? You - you don't usually call. Not anymore."

"I know," she shook her head. "I guess its just been weird. I mean, considering."

"You mean breaking up and now I'm getting married?" Dean joked.

"Right, that," she pretended she didn't remember.

He laughed. "We were friends before. We can be friends again."

"Really?" She asked, unsure. "Because trying to be friends after you had something together isn't always easy."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Rory realized she didn't mean her and Dean at all. Her thoughts flowed to Jess and Florida and the last time she saw him when he came to her window.

The same butterflies that came around whenever she saw Jess came again at the thought of his name. Rory shook her head and realized Dean was calling her name.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah," she smiled into her phone. "Yeah, I'm just a little distracted."

"Right," he said. "You're at Yale. Of course you're busy."

"Dean, its okay," she said and tried to regain the conversation but her thoughts had led her away from it.

He sounded less sure. "You should go back to work. Study, be brilliant. Write a story. I should go anyway."

They wrapped up their conversation and said their goodbyes. She sat there a moment then placed the phone back in its rightful place.

It was that moment that the door opened and in walked Paris. "Come on."

"Come on what?" Rory asked.

"Asher is doing a reading of Jaglon and there's all these young girls there fawning for his attention," she explained.

Rory was still confused. "Okay...?"

"We're going to go, too," she said as if it was the most obvious conclusion. Maybe it would have been had Rory's thoughts not been elsewhere.

She realized her friend shouldn't go alone so instead of fighting it, she stood up. "Let me grab my shoes."

...

"I don't want to meet him, Liz," Jess groaned for what seemed like the twentieth time in the conversation.

"He's a good man, baby," Liz pleaded to her son. "I promise you'll like him."

He pushed back a scoff. "I don't need to meet your new boyfriend."

"We've been together for months," she explained. "Nothing bad has happened."

"That's great," he said honestly. He really was glad nothing bad happened even if he didn't want to meet the guy. "I'm happy for you, Liz, really but it doesn't change anything."

"I've been clean," she whispered. "TJ makes me better."

He swallowed the urge to throw up. It never failed to make him feel horrible when he heard someone else was worth getting better but he wasn't. "Congratulations."

"What's wrong?" She asked as she noticed the sarcasm in his voice.

"Nothing's wrong," he shook his head. "Really. I'm happy for you, Liz."

"Then why won't you meet him?" She pushed. "This is good for me, Jess. We're doing really good. It's different this time."

"That's good," he said again. "I just want no part in this."

"It's serious," she added. "Me and him. I think its going somewhere, Jess."

"Great," Jess nodded. He was tired of this conversation. He'd had it too many times before. "Just don't come crying to me when he leaves."

Liz looked like she'd been shocked by electricity and he almost regretted his words. "Why are you like this? What could I possibly have done that was so horrible?"

This time he did scoff. "Do you want the whole list or just a rundown?"

"I tried!" She yelled. "I was a single mother! It wasn't easy."

"And I'm sure the string of jackasses that either were your boyfriends or your husbands helped that," he spat and walked away from her and into his kitchen.

"You can't talk to me like that," she followed.

"You barely tried," he turned around and faced his mother. "If it wasn't for Luke, I'd be a hell of a lot worse off."

Liz was silent. She felt stung as if she was slapped. As she struggled to find the next words to say, Jess took that as she knew it was true and walked over to his corner of the room.

"I'm sorry I didn't send you to him," she finally said.

Jess looked at his mother now. "I couldn't stay here, Liz."

"I know," she agreed. "But I needed you here."

"All I did was give you an extra mouth to feed and force Luke to come every month to keep us afloat," he added bluntly.

"Luke wanted to come," Liz told him.

"I know," Jess sighed. "But it doesn't mean he should have had to."

She nodded sadly. "I know."

"I got to go to work," he grabbed his jacket off the bed and put it on. "Show yourself out?"

"No," she answered in a low voice. "I'll come out with you."

He nodded and checked his coat pockets for his phone and his keys. Jess grabbed the first book he could find that'd be inconspicuous and stuffed it into his back pocket. "All right."

Liz followed her son out the door and he locked up behind the both of them. He didn't turn to see if she followed but he knew she was there. When they reached outside, both went their separate ways.

...

Asher had just finished reading from his new novel and prepared to answer any questions anyone had. Rory said nothing. Instead she let others talk to the professor as she had Paris beside her to talk to if she needed it.

"He was great," Paris gushed. "Wasn't he great?"

Rory nodded in agreement. "He was very impressive."

Paris looked over at her older boyfriend and fought back a smile. "And he's so commanding. Such a good public speaker."

"That he is," Rory still agreed.

"And he's sexy as hell," Paris added which finally woke Rory out of her agreeing phase.

She gave her friend and roommate a look. "Teacher. Mine. Thanks."

Paris stared at her. "Well, they can't all be James Dean on spring break who just up and leaves, can they?"

Rory turned her face away at that moment and looked straight ahead to see a bunch of girls walk up to Asher. "No. They can't."

"I'm sorry," Paris almost gasped. "That was insensitive. I'm trying to work on that. Terrence tells me to be honest but he tells me not to do it so blunty either."

"I see that's worked out for you," Rory still didn't face her.

"Terrence is gonna be so disappointed," she said.

"Paris?" Rory whispered. "If I wanted to tell you something that nobody else knew, would you promise not to tell anyone?"

"You told Lane about me and Asher," Paris said.

"Yes?"

"Which means if the opportunity came, I might not be trustworthy."

"Oh," Rory sagged in her seat.

Paris looked over at her and pulled her eyes off her boyfriend and to her best friend. "What is it?"

"It about Jess, actually," she told her.

"Jess?"

"The guy from Spring Break."

"Ah, that Jess," Paris nodded. "Continue."

"I saw him again," she confessed. "More than once."

"What? Where?" She was eager to find out despite her annoyance as girls flocked her boyfriend.

"Stars Hollow," Rory stared straight ahead as she said it so she didn't see Paris' expression.

She sounded angry. "He tracked you down?"

"Here's the fun part," she ignored the question and continued. "You remember Luke, the diner owner? He is Jess' uncle."

"Uncle?" She was surprised to say the least. "You mean he's -"

"Blood related to the guy who serves me and my mom coffee every day?" She phrased it as a question. "Yes. Thats exactly what I mean."

"Wow," Paris sighed and leaned back in her chair.

"Yep," she agreed.

Paris turned back to her friend. "Does this mean you're gonna have sex with him again?"

Rory finally turned her head in one quick motion. "No."

"Did you already?" Paris whispered.

Rory scoffed once. "No. There was none of that and there won't be again."

"Uh-huh," Paris pretended to agree. "Of course."

"What does that mean?" She asked skeptically.

"Means you are obviously still attracted to him," she shrugged and turned her attention back to Asher in front of the room. "And he's connected to your life in that weird small town. Really, its only a matter of time."

Rory sat silently as she considered Paris' words. She could put whatever attraction she had left for Jess aside, she thought. Not that she was attracted to him anymore. He left her without a word. He hurt her. Friendship was all they could have. Right? Rory wasn't sure.

Paris scoffed and broke Rory out of her thoughts. "Who is she kidding? Like he can't see through her book buying ploy? I mean, what girl hasn't used that one?"

Her attention turned back to her friend as Rory pushed aside all Jess thoughts. She'd think about them later.

...

Jess walked home from work and was relieved to see Todd wasn't home. He knew Caleb came back from Florida a few days after him but he wasn't sure when he was going to show up.

Just as he grabbed something frozen to heat up for dinner, the phone rang. Hesitantly, he picked it up. "Hello?"

"Your mom called me," Luke said.

"Let me guess - she told you I was wrong and you're gonna tell me to meet this guy?" He asked.

"Actually, I was gonna say youre right," he replied. "You don't have to meet this guy if you don't want to."

"Really?" He quirked an eyebrow up.

"You know the types of guys your mom dates better than anyone," Luke went on. "I think you have the right to say no."

Jess was surprised to hear that. "Thanks, Uncle Luke."

"Don't thank me yet," he warned. "You shouldnt have said some of that stuff to her, Jess."

"Which parts?" He asked curiously. "I said the truth. I can't help it if she doesn't like to hear it."

"You know how fragile she gets," Luke said.

Jess didn't budge from his side of the fight. "If she's doing as better as she says she is, then she can handle it."

"Jess," he said disapprovingly.

"I know," he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "She just gets to me. You know how it was. I can't just pretend it didn't happen."

"I'm not asking you to," the older man said. "Just, be a little less..."

"Less Jess?" He smirked.

"That's it," Luke agreed and Jess heard a smile in his response. "Can you try that, for me, maybe?"

"Okay," Jess sighed. "No promises, though. And I still don't want to meet the guy."

"Maybe you'll change your mind," Luke told him. "I heard the words etch-a-sketch used."

"Huh," he replied. "As interesting as that may be, I think its better I just pass."

"All right," he agreed. "Just remember, okay? Because she's calling me upset about things you said to her and I don't want to be in the middle of this, Jess."

"You won't be," he promised.

...

Rory sighed as she got back to her dorm that night. After the reading, she had had talked to Doyle and found out apparently Asher had a new girlfriend every year. It didn't phase her how the girlfriends were always a yale student either, according to her editor.

Then there was the conversation with Lane. Mrs Kim had taken in a girl in to live with her in Lane's bedroom. She had been taking it hard ever since she found out. It made Rory feel even guiltier for not telling her about Jess after all.

She had a meeting to go see Professor Fleming about her latest paper soon too and she felt worried enough about that. It was one thing to worry about your grades. It was a whole other thing to have your roommate's boyfriend be the one grading you.

Rory laid her books and her bag down and sat on the couch. With a sigh, she looked around for some kind of distraction. She considering a call to her mother but she knew whatever was happening with her grandparents and Jason's father was only getting worse. She would call later for an update when she was calmer herself.

A thought appeared to her and she grabbed the common room phone. It was inconvenient to not have her phone with her but she knew she would pick it up this weekend. As she dialed, she recalled how easily she remembered his number.

"Yeah?"

"Hey."

"I was hoping you'd call," Jess half-smiled.

"I forgot my phone at my mom's," she explained.

"Oh," he said. "I guess it was a good thing I didn't call then?"

"It would have been fine," Rory told him, almost stung that he hadn't tried to call.

"Good," he replied. "I wasn't sure if I could. Considering."

"You could," she said. "I just did."

"Right," he said. Jess couldn't figure out why he seemed so nervous.

"This is weird, isn't it?" Rory asked. She could feel it too.

He smirked now that he wasn't alone. "Little bit."

She sighed in relief. "I thought it was just me."

"I'm a little nervous too," he confessed.

"Good, I'm not alone," Rory smiled.

"There's got to be something we can talk about to make this less weird," Jess said.

"I'm trying to think of something," she laughed.

"Start simple," he supplied. "What's going on with you?"

"Um, I'm back at Yale, obviously," she said. "Went to a reading today with Paris."

"Wait, Paris?" He asked. "Wasn't she in Florida?"

"Yes," Rory answered. "And she knows."

"How much?" He wondered.

"All of it," she sighed. "She was there. I couldn't keep it from her. What if she ever saw you?"

"I get it," Jess nodded. "Really. It doesn't change anything. She was there."

"Jess," she said sadly. "We're friends."

"Friends is good," he agreed but added more. "But what do you do when you're attracted to that friend?"

Rory felt a blush want to rise at his words. She didn't reply to his question but instead reflected it elsewhere. "Let's just get to know each other first, okay?"

He nodded. "Okay."

"Okay," she said into the phone. "So...what about your day then?"

With that, they dove into a conversation and tried to push aside what exactly made it so hard to be just friends. They really did want to get to know each other better. Rory was glad for that and so was Jess.

They only hung up when it got too late to keep it going. It felt like they'd taken two steps forward with the phone call. It actually felt like progress had been made by the time they ended the call. Rory smiled as she placed the phone back and headed back to her room, feeling calmer with her feelings about Jess.


	8. Motherly Love

**A/N: thank you for all the reviews! They mean so much. I feel like I don't deserve all the compliments though, bits of the dialogue is from actual episodes. However it's good to know I'm mixing canon gilmore girls with the au in my head. I'm so relieved it's working good.**

Jess grabbed his keys and jacket as he got ready to head to work. When he opened the door, he found an unexpected sight. His mother stood in front of him, clearly excited about something.

"I have work," he said and tried to walk around her.

"I have news," Liz smiled.

He sighed. It had been days since their sort of fight. He'd hoped she'd given up on dinner. "I'm not meeting your boyfriend, Liz."

"He's not my boyfriend anymore," she shook her head, smile still in place. "He's my fiancé now. TJ proposed."

That stopped Jess in his tracks. "You're getting married?"

"Yes," she nodded. "We spent all last night talking about it and we want to do it soon."

"How soon?" He asked.

"In a few days," she beamed. "Jess, I want you to be there."

"Be where?" He asked. "Liz."

She continued on happily despite his less than happy tone and expression. "Its gonna be in Stars Hollow. It just feels right to get married in the town I grew up in, to be near Luke -"

Jess stopped her there. "Be near Luke. Huh."

"What?" She finally noticed his reaction and broke out of her bubble. "What's wrong?"

"You didn't seem to want to be near Luke when we needed help," he pointed out.

"I'm getting married, Jess," she said. "Am I going to get at least get a congratulations?"

"Congratulations," he said. "I hope this one lasts longer than the others."

"Will you come?" The happy expression had faded from her face and was now sad.

"I think I'll just wait for the next one," Jess walked past her.

Liz followed him down the stairs. "There won't be a next one, Jess. This is it."

"That's great," he said and kept on his way. "I really have to go, Liz."

"Okay," she stopped walking. "I'll call you later all right?"

"Yeah," Jess said as he disappeared from her sight.

Once he was outside, he took a different route to the main building for the messengers. He stopped when he was sure Liz wouldn't find him and took a deep breath. He wasn't exactly sure what he was supposed to do in the situation.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. There was still some time before work but he was also walking. He guessed he could grab a cab but there was the cost that stopped him. Jess sighed, put his phone away and kept on his walk through the streets of New York.

...

"There was cats outside this morning," Lorelai stated.

The younger Gilmore was confused. "Huh?"

"They know," she whispered.

"You okay, Mom?" Rory asked her mom worriedly as they sat at the counter of Luke's diner.

She shook her head but forced a smile. "No but I'm doing better."

After they found out that Floyd had been suing Richard, it was soon discovered that Floyd and Richard teamed together against Jason. Jason decided to sue them which led to his and Lorelai's break-up. It's been drama filled days ever since.

"Jason?" She asked curiously.

"He's called," she replied. "I didn't answer."

"Maybe he's dropping the lawsuit," Rory suggested.

"I don't think so, hun," Lorelai shook her head once.

"Don't think what?" Luke asked them as he brought them their burgers and fries.

"That we're gonna have Friday night dinner this week," Rory answered.

He looked between them. "Is something wrong?"

"We don't think Mom is staying at her house," Lorelai admitted.

"Her and Grandpa were a little weird," Rory chimed in.

His face looked sorry. "Oh. Well. I hope they work whatever it is out."

"They will," Lorelai nodded though her face didn't seem so sure.

The bell above the door chimed and Luke's face seemed very surprised when he saw who it was. At first, Rory thought it could be Jess but when she turned around, she saw an older blonde woman she'd never seen before.

"Liz," Luke said.

Lorelai turned around and Rory dropped the fry in her hand. Liz walked forward with a smile so unlike the expression she'd had when she left Jess. It was back to the original happiness.

"Hey, big brother," she sat herself next to Lorelai at the counter.

"This is a surprise," he said dumbly. "What are you doing here?"

"Hmm, what am I doing here?" She replied back. "What am I doing here?"

"Liz?" Luke questioned.

Right then, the bell rang again above the door and in walked someone else the Gilmore's didn't recognize. It was a man and he looked excited too as he walked right over to Liz.

"Luke, you remember TJ," she beamed.

He made a face and quickly removed it. "I do. How you doing, TJ?"

"How am I doing?" He wondered out loud. "Lizzie, how am I doing?"

"They're both doing it," Lorelai whispered to Rory.

"Hes doing great," Liz answered for him. "Because we are getting married!"

Now Luke looked even more surprised. "Married? Really?"

She clapped her hands together happily. "And we're doing it right here this week!"

"Wow, how fast," he tried to sound cheerful.

"We could do it at the inn," Lorelai chimed in.

Liz gasped but TJ cut in. "What about the Renaissance wedding?"

"Right," Liz slammed her hand not too hard on the counter. "We were going to do right in the center of town, in front of the gazebo."

Rory, who had been mostly silent since the moment Jess' mother walked in, smiled at the idea. "That sounds really nice."

Luke shook his head. "But why so soon? I mean, weddings take planning."

"You eloped," Lorelai said into her cup.

He gave her a look that ended when Liz answered. "We wanna do it before the circuit gets started. That way, all of our friends can come. It's gonna be so beautiful."

"You ever been to a Renaissance wedding, Luke?" TJ asked.

"Can't say that I have, TJ," he replied.

"I'm gonna have a bachelor party, too," the groom to be added. "My brother's the best man. Its gonna be great. You have to come."

Both Rory and Lorelai watched as he looked like he fought against saying no. "Well...I mean, if you want me there."

"You're gonna be my brother-in-law!" He exclaimed. "You have to come. I want you to be my best man."

"You're kidding," he looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"Of course I'm kidding," TJ said. "You're like 800th on the list. But you can come to the bachelor party if you want."

Liz cut in between her brother and her fiancé. "Are you happy for me? Say you're happy for me."

"Of course I'm happy for you," he smiled at his sister then turned quickly to the man she was marrying. "And I'll come to the bachelor party."

"Luke at a bachelor party," Lorelai whispered to her daughter.

"Eat your burger," he told her.

"Yes, sir," she said and took a big bite.

"I am going to go get some beer," TJ announced and walked out of the diner.

The three of them shook their heads while Liz beamed happily. "Isn't he great?"

"Yeah," Luke answered skeptically. "So...does Jess know?"

It caught Rory's attention when she heard his name. She drank her drink and ate at a normal pace to try to not look so obvious that she now paid more attention.

"He know," Liz shrugged. "Told him this morning."

"How'd he take it?" Luke asked.

Another shrug. "Took it like Jess."

"What does that mean?" He asked.

"He's not entirely happy about it," she sighed, the smiled faded. "He's not coming, either."

"Oh, man," Luke sighed.

"Its fine," she waved it off. "I know where he's coming from."

"I told him to be less Jess..." He muttered.

"If he doesn't want to come, he doesn't have to," she said though she looked sad at the idea.

"Uh, Luke?" Rory called and he looked over at her. She pulled her phone out and he nodded.

Lorelai put her hand on her daughter's arm. "Who you calling?"

"Just a friend," she shrugged and walked out the door.

Once outside, she looked around to make sure none of the usual gossipers were around then dialed. She was grateful Lorelai had given her phone back as soon as she got there.

"Rory?" Jess answered.

"Hey," she said and shifted her feet.

"Hey," the smile in his voice was evident.

She wasn't sure how to say what she wanted to say so instead Rory went right for it. "Your mom is here."

"Oh," the smile would definitely be off of Jess' face now.

"She's getting married?" She asked.

Jess sighed. "She came by my apartment this morning and told me. I guess when she left, she got right into her car to tell Luke."

"And TJ is here," she added. "He's...eccentric."

"That sounds like my mom's type," he laughed humorlessly. "Or its just the type of her, actually."

"What's - I don't know how to ask," she shook her head and looked around at the town. "You and your mom. You mentioned stuff before but -"

"Do we get along?" He asked for her.

Rory nodded. "Yeah."

"When we have to," he admitted. "Usually, no, though. It's not the best of relationships."

"I'm sorry," she told him. "Both of your parents, that sucks."

"Its not a big deal," Jess replied.

Rory pouted. "Me calling about her probably isn't a good thing then right? I should have let it slide."

"No, its a good thing," he said. "I like talking to you."

She smiled despite herself and turned her face away so anyone in the diner couldn't see her. "Jess."

"What?" He acted innocent. "Friends can like talking to each other, can't they?"

"Right," she agreed though it did give her those butterflies again to hear him talk like that. She decided to change the subject. "You should come."

"Come where?" He questioned.

"Here," she clarified. "For your mom's wedding."

"No, that's okay," he waved it off.

"It'd be fun," she said. "They said its gonna have a Renaissance theme."

Jess pretended to think for a moment. "Would you come with me?"

Rory let out a small laugh. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why?" He said. "Because we slept together?"

"Well, yeah," she said.

"But we're friends," he said again. "Friends do favors. And I mean, its not like you're attracted to me, right?"

"I didn't say that," she said without thinking.

She could heard a smirk in his voice next. "Oh, so you are?"

"I didn't say that, either," Rory pushed back the blush.

"Huh," he said, amused.

"I have school still," she said. "I probably can't make it anyway."

"Okay," he understood. "I get it. I don't wanna get between you and Yale."

She smiled again, unable to help herself. "You're sweet."

"Gee, don't sound so surprised," he said and Rory laughed.

Inside the diner, Lorelai watched her daughter talk on the phone. There was smiles and laughter and something she hadn't seen in a while in her.

Liz had gond upstairs by now so she turned to Luke and whispered, "Who do you think Rory's talking to?"

He looked at the person in question then backed to Lorelai. "Someone from school?"

"No, that's not a school conversation," she shook her head. "That's something else."

"Like what?" He asked.

"Its almost like -" she cut herself off. "No. It can't be that."

He leaned closer. "What?"

"She looks like she's talking to someone she's in love with," Lorelai explained.

They both turned back to watch Rory for a few more seconds. Luke then headed back to work and Lorelai tried to focus on her food. A few minutes later, Rory walked in and her mother pretended she hasn't been wondering about the other end of the call.

...

Luke told Cesar to run the diner and said he had errands to suddenly run. Lorelai suspected that he wanted to get out of there while his sister and newly returned TJ were in his apartment but didn't voice that opinion.

Rory left soon after, too. She had to get back to Yale because this was more of a weekday visit. Lorelai walked back with her to the house and watched as she grabbed her few belongings.

Lorelai crossed her arms and leaned on the wall beside her. "Hey, I have a question."

"Yeah?" Rory looked at her mother. "What's that?"

"I'm not trying to pry, I swear," she defended. "Its just, earlier when you were on the phone -"

Rory tensed up, unsure how to handle if she connected it was Jess. "What about it?"

"Is something going on?" Lorelai asked. "Is there - I don't know, is there a guy?"

"A guy?" She echoed.

"I know there was the whole spring break guy and that was weeks ago," she explained. "Did you meet someone? Someone that made you not think of the guy from florida?"

"No," Rory shook her head. "I didn't meet a guy and I don't have a boyfriend."

The older Gilmore frowned. "I saw you."

"Saw me what?" She wondered. It wasn't as if she and Jess had done anything while in Stars Hollow together, she thought.

"On the phone," she uncrossed her arms. "Hun, you looked really happy."

"So you're worried because I wasn't angry or upset?" She asked confusedly.

Lorelai took a breath and tried to gather the right wording. "I'm worried because...you reminded me of myself. When I was with your father."

"Oh," Rory said. She wasn't sure what to say to that.

"So I'm asking again," Lorelai said. "Is there something going on you're not telling me?"

Rory was silent. She thought over the pro/con list she had made about whether or not to tell her mom. She thought of her conversation with Jess about how it might be awkward if her mother found out about Florida.

Slowly, she answered. "Its not a rebound."

"Okay," Lorelai smacked her lips together. "What is it then?"

"Its just a guy," Rory explained. "We're not dating."

"Then what are you doing?" She asked. "Are you sleeping with him?"

"Mom!" She exclaimed. "No. Jeez."

Lorelai put her hands up in surrender. "Sorry. Its just the Florida guy thing was surprising so maybe -"

"Maybe I sleep with everyone now?" She finished. "I'm not. There was only the one guy and the one time."

"Okay," she nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you sleep with everyone now."

Rory nodded. "I know. And the guy on the phone, he really is just a friend."

Now Lorelai nodded. "If it was more, if something happened...you'd tell me, right?"

"Yeah," she nodded, the guilt washing over her.

"Good," she smiled. "Now I think I delayed you enough. Go back to school. Thank you for coming to deal with me and my post-break-up mood."

"Of course," she smiled finally and hugged her mother. "I love you. I'll see you in a few days."

"Love you, too," they pulled out of the hug and Rory walked outside with her bags as Lorelai followed. "See you this weekend, babe."

"See you," she waved as she got in her car. "Give me updates on grandma and grandpa?"

"Will do," she answered with a small smile.

Within minutes, the car was started and out of the driveway. Lorelai stood there and wondered about this mystery guy from the phone and just how much he meant to her daughter.


	9. New York or Stars Hollow?

**A/N: Sorry this took me so long to update! Some stuff going on right now and then I spent the weekend at...AT A CON! Got to hang out with Jess himself and Milo is the sweetest, seriously. Best weekend ever.**

 **I own nothing but a bunch of dvds and my pics with Milo. Some dialogue again taken from episodes and this one in particular is fun to write since it actually is a Jess episode! And onto the fic!**

"Hey you'll never guess what I found!" Caleb exclaimed as he entered the apartment.

Jess stared at him blankly. "Your key? Where have you been?"

"I met a girl," he smiled brightly.

"Poor her," Jess said as he sat down on his mattress stuffed in the corner of the apartment.

Caleb shook his head and walked to his friend, determined to show him what he found. "Look."

He threw a folded piece of paper onto Jess' lap. He recognized it instantly. "Is this -?"

"Uh-huh," Caleb nodded.

Jess unfolded the page and looked at his own handwriting that graced the page. "Where was it?"

"I don't even know to be honest," he shrugged. "I found it in my stuff."

He stared at him once he took his eyes off the paper. "How did it get in your stuff then?"

"I grabbed a lot of shit when I left that hotel," Caleb replied.

Jess shook his head and stood up as he grabbed his jacket. "I'm gonna take a walk."

"Are you mad?" His friend questioned. "I thought you'd be happy I found it."

"I'm not mad," he told him. "I just want to go out for a bit."

"Hey, man, I know you," Caleb followed him.

"Then you know after walks, I'm good," he tried to joke. "Really. I'm fine."

Jess walked out the door and as soon as he was out of there, pulled out his phone. Rory's name stared back at him in his contacts. He wanted to tell her, better than that, he wanted to show her the note.

Suddenly the idea of going to Stars Hollow for his mother's wedding held the chance that she might be there after all.

Just as he was about to move his feet down the hallway, a figure appeared. Jess couldn't help the smirk that grew as he saw who it was. "What are you doing here?"

"The guy next door just ran out of crack to sell so they sent me over to borrow a cup," Luke joked then looked over at the walls. "Hey, you put those holes there yourself?"

Jess hugged his uncle quickly. "I wasn't expecting you."

"I wasn't expecting me, either," he explained. "Your mom came by."

"I heard," he admitted then regretted it instantly when he thought of the questions that would follow the who.

Luke made a face, obviously wondering the exact thing Jess thought he would. "How did you know?"

Jess sighed and shoved his hands in his pocket as they both walked further from the apartment. He figured the truth wouldn't be too bad. "Rory."

"Rory," Luke reacted, surprised. "Oh."

"What?" Jess asked.

"Just -" his uncle shook his head. "You two hit it off, huh?"

"Its not a big deal," he pretended. Maybe if that was what he told people, he'd start to believe it himself, he thought. "We just call each other from time to time."

"Do you -?" Luke wondered then stopped only to start again. "Do you like her?"

Jess turned back at him with a glare. "No. I don't like her. And before this turns into a middle school, circle yes or no if you like someone conversation, I assume there's a point to coming down to this neighborhood."

"Wanted to see how you were doing," he said.

"Doing great," his nephew said.

"No, I'm not even doing great and I have running water," Luke remarked as he took in more of his surroundings.

Jess resisted the urge to comment. "Is this about Liz getting married? I already told her I'm not going."

"I know you told her that," Luke said. "But maybe you should reconsider."

"Why?" Was all Jess said.

"Because she's your mother and she's finally fixing her life," he explained.

"Huh," he nodded once and without a look behind him. "I thought it was just a wedding."

"She wants you there," he went on. "Jess, it'd mean a lot to her if you were there."

Another nod. "Would have been nice if she had been there for me, too."

Luke grabbed his nephew's arm and the two men stopped walking. "Hey. I know more than anything about the crap she put you through."

"Then you know why its best I stay away," Jess pointed out.

"I'm not gonna ask again," he said. "I'm barely asking this time. Just think about it. Come, see her be happy then move on from it all. If not for anything else, come for the food."

Jess smirked at the idea of whatever food Liz would serve at a Renaissance faire wedding. It didn't entirely convince him though. "I don't know, Luke."

"What about Rory?" He asked.

"What about her?" Jess stiffened.

"You could see her," Luke said. "It'd be in stars hollow. You'd have a friendly face around."

His smirk grew. "Are you saying your face isn't friendly, Uncle Luke?"

"I'm saying you'd probably rather look at her face than mine, smart ass," he said pointedly.

"She won't be there," he said while they kept moving and now were headed down the stairs.

"How do you know that?" Luke asked. "I never even heard she won't be there."

"She told me," Jess shrugged. "When she told me about the wedding."

Luke almost stopped again but didn't since they were in the middle of a staircase going down. "So you two are really chummy then."

Jess scoffed but didn't risk a glance back. "What?"

"Rory called you," Luke explained. "Told you that your mother was getting married, that she'd be out of town for it...did you ask her to go with you or something?"

"No," he scoffed again. He really didn't want to talk about this.

"Jess," Luke put his hand on his nephew's shoulder to make him stop. It worked. "There something going on between you two?"

He sighed, not sure how exactly to answer. Instead, he went with the current accuracy. "No. We're friends."

Luke must have searched his face for something and decided he was telling the truth. He gave up and they continued down the steps and to the outside. "Listen. Just consider it, all right?"

He sighed, almost defeated. "Fine. All right. I'll think about it."

"That's all I ask for," Luke replied.

...

"So what was grandma's excuse for canceling Friday night dinner this week?" Rory asked into her phone as she walked through the halls of Yale.

"That Dad was traveling and she has a function," Lorelai answered.

Rory made a face. "It was that generic?"

Lorelai quickly responded, "She put no thought into it. It was muffled and I thought I heard knocking and someone say turndown service."

"Living in a hotel," she shook her head.

"And hiding it," her mother finished.

Rory perked up. "We should talk to them. Well, you. I'm a child."

She could almost hear Lorelai shake her head. "Talking isn't my parent's thing. Plus they'd be humiliated if they knew we knew what it is that's going on."

"We have to do something," she said before she got an idea. "What about the test run? Isn't that in a few weeks?"

"You're right!" Lorelai exclaimed. "I could invite them to the Dragonfly test run and give them a secluded room so they only have each other. Mom and Dad will have to work it out."

"Sneaky," Rory said proudly.

"And genius," Lorelai agreed.

Rory smiled brightly. "I like it."

She felt a buzz on her phone and she glanced at the screen to see what it was. Lorelai must have sensed the silence and got curious. "What's wrong?"

"Paris is calling me," she scrunched her face. "I guess I should take this."

"Okay, sweets," she said. "Call me later?"

"Of course," they said their goodbyes and hung up. Immediately she called Paris back. "What is it, Paris?"

"Asher is in the hospital," she answered instantly. "I don't know what happened. One minute he was fine and we were eating gelato. Then he dropped his spoon and kind of leaned on me and he was in pain, Rory."

"Slow down," she whispered. "Where are you? What hospital?"

Paris told her the name of the hospital and Rory rushed to her dorm room. She put her books in her room and rushed back out with her keys in hand.

The drive to the hospital wasn't that long. Rory kept her mind off of what could happen and instead how to help Paris. She knew her friend would get annoyed at everyone who worked there. It brought a sort of smile to her face as she thought of Paris being so Paris in a place of healing.

She got onto an elevator with some of the staff in hopes she headed for the right direction. Rory really wished she had asked Paris for an exact room number.

In a moment of bravery, she turned to the nurse beside her. "Excuse me. I don't know where to go. A friend of mine is here and I don't know exactly where -"

She was cut off as the elevator stopped. On the other side of the door, she could clearly hear the one and only Paris Gellar. She ranted on to somebody about not wanting to ask twice and someone replied to tell her to keep her voice down. Rory never finished her question as she waited for the doors to open and everyone to get out.

"This is Asher Fleming in there," Paris told a doctor as Rory walked closer. "Of Yale university. He's an important man. He's an accomplished author, too, did you know that?"

"That may be but -" the doctor started.

"No buts!" Paris yelled. "You're acting as if he's just here for a cough."

"The procedures are procedures," he told her.

"Ha!" Paris scoffed. "Tell me something I don't know, Socrates."

"Paris," Rory said when she reached her and tried to turn her away.

Her friend sighed. "No one will get him a moistened towel. He asked for one twenty minutes ago and they're acting as if he doesn't deserve a moistened towel."

"I'm sure thats not what they think," Rory walked them towards the nearest seats and sat them down. "Paris, you gotta fill me in here."

So she did. Paris explained that happened to had led to the gelato stand and what had happened after. She ended and sounded much more sad than when she had began.

"They won't even let me see him because I'm not a blood relative," she sighed.

"You'll see him," Rory put her hand on her friend's shoulder to try to comfort her but then removed it, not being sure if Paris would want that. "Is it serious?"

"It wasn't a heart attack," she replied. "It was something like angina."

"Oh," Rory said. She thought of years earlier when her own grandfather had landed in the hospital for the same thing. "Good. Right?"

"Right."

"Paris, what is it?"

"The wobbly, the leaning on me, dropping his spoon..." She trailed off then continued. "He's old."

Rory was surprised that was where her train of thought followed. "What?"

"I saw him through the curtain," she whispered. "He was looking up like he was looking up at God. He looked so close to death."

"He's not that close," she tried to reassure her.

Paris didn't budge. "He's closer than me."

"Asher could live forty more years," Rory said. "And you could get hit by an anvil tomorrow. Age isn't a definite timeline to death."

"I'm 19," Paris said. "I should be rollicking. Asher doesn't rollick."

She slumped in her chair as she waited for news. Rory leaned back in her own too and finally replied. "He's British. He probably didn't rollick much when he was 19, either."

It was with that Paris finally managed to crack a semblance of a smile.

...

Jess stood in front of the diner once again. It was a breezy sixty five degrees today and there he stood in his leather jacket. He really needed a more practical one, he always told himself. The day of the wedding was supposed to be much warmer if the weatherman was right anyway.

He walked to the door and pushed it open slowly. The first voice he heard was familiar and spoke to his uncle.

"I can't believe I didn't know all the details about the wedding," Lorelai sighed. "Is there anything else I'm not caught up on?"

Luke nodded to her. "No."

Jess smirked to himself as the perfect opportunity to walk in arose. He walked right to the two of them at the counter. "I'm not paying for a motel so I'm staying with you."

Lorelai gasped. "Liar!"

"I didn't know he was coming!" Luke defended as Jess walked up the stairs. "I went yo see him in New York."

"You went to New York?" She accused. "I had things I needed picked up in New York!"

As he walked into the upstairs apartment, whatever Luke and Lorelai's conversations was continued. Jess put his bag down and sat on the bed he had previously stayed on. With a sigh, he wondered what exactly he would do now that he was here.

A ring pulled him out of his thoughts and he heard Luke's answering machine come on. Liz Danes chirped loudly on the other end. Jess closed his eyes as he listened to her go on about wedding plans and the food.

He pulled out his own phone to try to block it out. A few rings and it went straight to voicemail. Jess let out another sigh as he put down his cell. Rory was probably busy anyway, he thought. He doubted she cared too much about whether he was here for the wedding.

He hated this friends thing. He didn't even want to admit that he did. What happened in Florida was a one-time thing. At the time, it seemed like more than that and who would have thought finding out you have an actual connection to would make it less likely to be more.

Jess wasn't one to admit his feelings, either. He couldn't deny how he felt about that girl he met on Spring Break. Somewhere in that girl he knew now was that Rory that he first met. There was glimpses of her at times but it seemed as if she was guarded.

He couldn't exactly blame her for that. After he left without a word after a night like they had, it seemed wrong to ask for another chance. Suddenly, the note felt like it was burning a hole in his duffel bag. He knew he had to show her it.

His phone buzzed now and Jess checked to see who it was. At first, he thought it might be his mother. Her voicemail had finally ended so maybe she had decided to call him. The name on the screen surprised him and didn't at the same time.

 _Can't talk. At hospital_ , it read.

Jess' eyes widened. _Hospital?_

 _Its Paris' boyfriend_ , was a quick reply and he felt himself sigh in relief. Of course if it was anything with her, Lorelai wouldn't be downstairs in a debate about her to-do list.

 _Let me know if you need anything,_ he texted her back.

It took a couple of minutes for the reply to come. He wondered if she'd just not seen it or worse, did and didn't know how to reply. _I will._

He put down his phone again and this time, his mind trailed back to whatever this wedding will be. One thing was for sure, he hoped Liz would be sober.

The door opened just as Jess reached into his bag for a book. He regretted not having one stuffed in his pocket this time but it seemed he wouldn't get the chance to read anyway.

"Apparently you are coming to a bachelor party," Luke told him.

Jess made a face. "What?"

Luke nodded. "TJ wants both of us there."

"Pass," Jess squirmed in his seat.

"If I have to go," his uncle stared him down. "You have to go."

"She doesn't even know I'm here yet," he replied.

"She will soon," Luke got an evil glint to his eye.

"Wait," Jess stood up. "Are you gonna tell her?"

His uncle crossed his arms. "It's her wedding. I think she has to know youre actually coming."

Jess sighed but spoke with a smirk. "Right. I guess I was holing I could slide in and out."

"I don't think so," he shook his head once then turned to leave. "Remember. The party's tonight. Tell your mom before then."

"I'm not making any promises!" He shouted as Luke disappeared behind the door.

A loud exhale escaped him. This was not about to be a fun night.

 **AN: I'm taking forever on this episode, I know! But because its one of, if not number one, favorite episodes and it has a bunch of good Jess material to use that I can't not lol I hope there's more coming soon, if not, I apologize in advance! Thank you so much for the reviews and for sticking around! It really does mean a lot even if I don't always say it :)**


	10. A bachelor party and a hospital

**A/N: I'm just gonna post this in case anyone actually wants to see my pics with Milo lol my twitter is seanbennigans and I posted my pics and even a recap (just of the first day convo only tho), just check media bc its easier to find. I don't know if anyone even wants to see but I thought I'd offer ha**

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Jess muttered as he got out of his car and walked to the entrance of the last place he expected to meet his future stepfather.

The book in his jacket pocket burned a hole and all he wanted to do was go back the way he came. He couldn't imagine much about what kind of guy this TJ was. He avoided any opportunity Liz had presented for them to meet and now he was stuck.

His fist clenched together as he took a deep breath and opened the door. The club was dark and he had secretly hoped he got the directions wrong. But then Jess saw Luke, who looked very uncomfortable as he stood at a table with a couple of other guys. He wondered which one was TJ.

Luke looked more than relieved when he saw his nephew approach. Jess slumped in a seat near the group and sighed. "What took you so long?"

"Couldn't find the place," he lied. He really didn't want to be there.

His uncle made a face. "Told you we should have all just come together."

"Is this Jess?" TJ peeked over. "Are you Jess?"

"What it says on my driver's license," he said.

"We finally meet," he said. "Maybe I could draw you a picture on my etch-a-sketch."

Jess looked over at his uncle pointedly. Luke just looked back with a 'told you.' "Aren't you gonna sit?"

"He doesn't wanna make a lap," TJ answered for him.

The guy who looked like he was the brother of TJ he heard about added, "A lap is just an illusion."

"What?" Jess turned to both of them.

Luke just shook his head but still didn't sit yet. "Don't get him started."

"I want to talk to you, by the way," TJ turned his attention to Jess.

"I do enjoy a good palaver," Jess commented.

TJ didn't understand. "Huh?"

"We'll talk," he said and pulled out a book.

Luke sighed as he gave in and finally sat. "What are you reading?"

Jess slanted the cover at him to reveal a title his uncle didn't recognize. "You read it before?"

"No," Luke said quickly. "I haven't - no, I don't read...that much, lately."

He gave him a look that said 'what are you rambling about?' but didn't ask it. "Something wrong?"

"No," he shook his head. "Nothing's wrong."

"Okay," Jess wanted it to let it go but he can't remember the last time he'd seen Luke so flustered. In fact, he never thought he'd seen it at all. "Just, I never expected a question about books to make you so nervous."

"I'm not nervous," he shrugged nonchalantly.

That just threw Jess more off. "You sure?"

"I'm fine," Luke told him.

His tone sounded less than fine but he relented and let it go. Jess figured if he wanted to tell him, he would eventually. And its not as if he wasn't holding his own secret.

...

Rory sat in the waiting area of the hospital. Paris had finally been able to go in to see Asher. Before she went in, she told her that she was about to give him 'the talk'. She wasn't sure what state her friend would be in when she walked out of that room.

A girl walked in, pretty, young, brunette. She walked right to the nurses. "I'm looking for Asher Fleming."

"He should be out in a minute," the nurse replied after she checked something Rory couldn't see.

"Thank you," the brunette said and sat down next to her.

Rory closed her magazine and remembered what Doyle said about Asher having a reputation for dating students. "He'll be all yours in a minute, girlfriend."

The girl looked at her strangely. Paris and Asher soon walked out and came right towards them. Asher spoke first as the two of them stood up. "Miss Gilmore."

"Professor Fleming," she smiled at him. No matter what happened with her friend, she always respected him. She turned to Paris. "You ready?"

"I'm actually going to go with Asher," Paris answered. "We're gonna do some planning for England."

"But I thought -" she cut herself off, confused.

The older man used that time to address the brunette who had came in. "Andrea, what are you doing here?"

"Mom called," the girl now called Andrea replied.

He smiled at her softly and introduced her. "Paris, Rory, this is my granddaughter, Andrea."

Paris and Andrea exchanged Hello's and Rory stood there awkwardly. She remembered her usage of the word girlfriend. "Hey, there."

Andrea smiled at her slightly. "Hi."

"I guess I should be going then," Rory shifted awkwardly. "I'll see you at home."

"See you at home," Paris smiled. She really did look happy.

She nodded and said goodbye to Professor Fleming then walked back to the elevator. Rory pulled out her phone and considered texting quickly to Jess. It felt weird and strangely normal to be his friend.

Her fingers hung over the buttons, unsure of what to do. Something in here screamed to call him and tell him what was going on. Another side of her screamed not to do it, that if she called him, it would be hard for her to stop.

Instead, she went to her speed dial and called the first person she usually would. The phone rang a couple of times before it finally picked up. "Hello?"

"Hey, mom," she smiled into the phone.

"What's going on?" Lorelai asked. "You only left a few hours ago so something's not wrong is it?"

"Nothing's wrong," she shook her head then frowned. "Well, actually, I'm at a hospital."

There was silence on the other end and Rory waited patiently for a response. When more seconds ticked by, she wondered if she lost her.

"Mom?" She asked. "You still there?"

"Still here," she confirmed finally. "Just I think my heart stopped when I heard the word hospital. What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she replied. "Its not me who was a patient. I'm visiting."

"Oh, thank god," she could imagine her mother put her hand over her heart. "Start with that next time, please?"

"Sorry," she smiled again at the concern.

"So who's in the hospital?" She asked. "Are they okay?"

"Its Asher Fleming," Rory told her.

"Ah," she said knowingly. "The professor and Paris' boyfriend."

"He's okay," she said. "He's actually released right now and Paris is going with him. I was here as moral support."

"Good," Lorelai said. "I mean, good that he's okay and getting released. But also good because Paris on a regular day is a lot to deal with. I can't imagine Paris in a crisis."

She almost laughed at that as the elevator reached the right floor. "She was pretty calm considering."

"Well, good," Lorelai said. "Just next time you're lending moral support in a hospital, start by telling me its moral support, all right?"

"I will," she said. "Hey, how's everything with grandma and grandpa? Did you ask them about the test run yet?"

"I've called," she sighed. "They conveniently are always out however when I do."

"What do you think is going to happen?" Rory asked, worried.

"I don't know," Lorelai said honestly. "One thing is for sure, though. They're not gonna tell us about it."

The elevator chimed and Rory stepped out. Her and her mother said their goodbyes as she headed for her car. Right as she was about to stuff her phone back into her pocket, that chimed also.

She pulled it back out and looked at the screen. A smile spread across Rory's face as she read the message.

' _Remind me to not go to the next guy my mother marries' bachelor party_ ', it said.

' _I'm stunned to find someone who doesn't like a bachelor party_ ', she wrote back.

' _Be stunned_ ,' Jess simply wrote.

Rory stared at her phone and wondered about the double meaning of the two words. She considered a text back but the rationale that took over her mind in the elevator was back.

Regretfully, she tucked her phone away and hoped that she could somehow get Jess off of her mind as she headed back to Yale.

...

Jess stuffed his phone away and opened his book again. Its not that he expected Rory to constantly reply to him. He wasn't exactly sure what he expected really. Maybe he just wanted to not be at this bachelor party anymore with TJ and his brother.

"I love mud," TJ's brother who Jess couldn't remember the name of said. "I love wrestling. I love girls. This is everything I love."

Jess looked over at where the stranger faced and saw just as he said, two women wrestling in the mud. He wasn't exactly interested in what was going on so he once again went back to his book.

TJ noticed him with his book and leaned over. "Hey, you having a good time?"

"I'm having a gay old time," he answered without looking up from his book.

"You know you read so much, I'm thinking of nicknaming you Reads," he commented.

Jess resisted a scoff and he knew Luke could tell it. "Good one."

TJ didn't notice the sarcasm and instead continued onto a different topic. "You know, your mom really wants you to walk her down the aisle."

Both Luke and Jess looked at him now. "Does she now?"

"Usually a father would do that," he continued. "But he can't. He's worm food so she'd really like you to do it."

"Why not Luke?" Jess suggested which got him a look from the person in question.

"She wants you," TJ said.

Jess shook his head and went back to his book. "I don't think so."

"She'd really like you to do it," he pushed on.

"And I really don't want to do it," he stated. "Again, I say, ask Luke."

"But she wants you," he pointed out again.

Jess shrugged. "Then I guess we're at a stalemate."

"I don't think you're at a stalemate," TJ's brother commented.

"There's girls wallowing around in slimy dirt and you're looking at me?" He asked.

"I don't want to tell your mom no."

"Then I'll tell her."

TJ kept going. "I don't want you telling her no, either."

"Wanna pitch in for a telegram?" He asked sarcasticly.

TJ flipped the book right out of his hand and both stood up, started by Jess shoving his future father-in-law. Luke immediately stepped between them. "Hey, hey! Knock it off!"

A bouncer came up to them and told them to get out. Jess grabbed his book and headed straight for the door with Luke close on his heels. He wasn't sure how far behind TJ and his brother were. He got out as quick as he could and headed for his car.

...

When Rory got back to her dorm, she flicked on the lights and saw the doors were shut to each room. It was late after all that she finally got back and she sighed. She'd hoped she got back earlier to catch some final studying in.

The door creaked slightly as she went into her own room. She made sure any lights she turned on were off before she entered the bedroom and closed the door. The room was dark and she was almost relieved.

First, she considered calling Lane. One look at the time and she figured she might be asleep. Paris was out of the question for tonight and her mother, she had so much to deal with right now. A flicker of thought headed to Jess again and she stole a glance at his earlier text.

Quickly, she typed back, ' _I am stunned_ ' and put her phone down. Rory grabbed her pajamas and changed. Just after she had climbed into bed, her phone chimed and there was a simple _':)_ ' written from Jess.

She smiled to herself and closed her eyes. Tomorrow was another final to worry about and maybe a long sleep would help prepare her for it.

...

Luke opened the door to the diner as Jess followed behind him. The younger Danes slumped down into a seat, tired and honestly glad to be away from the man his mother planned to marry.

"Tonight I got in a fight with my nephew at a strip club," Luke remarked as he sat down as well. "I haven't been in a fight since sixth grade."

Jess smirked. "Its not like we threw punches."

"I haven't broken up a fight in years, either," he corrected with his own smirk.

"But I have fought with guys Liz planned to marry," he added.

Luke looked over at him strangely. "You know, Jess, me and you, we have a pretty good relationship right?"

"Yeah," he said hesitantly and wondered what he was getting at.

"But you and your mom..." He shook his head. "I know you don't want to be here for this. I don't know why exactly you came then but if you really do hate her that much, maybe this wasn't a good idea."

"I don't hate my mother," he said. "And I came...because of you."

"Me?" Luke actually sounded surprised. "But its not my wedding."

"You asked me to come," he remarked. "Me and Liz, we'll never get along that great. But you know, it cant be so bad, coming here."

"And this has nothing to do with this friendship you've striken up with a certain Gilmore girl?" He wondered.

Jess sighed and put his hands out in front of him on the table. "Rory has nothing to do with this."

"What's going on there, Jess?" He asked. "Come on. I'm not stupid."

"Nothing's going on there," he told him. And he was right. Nothing was...now.

"Jess," he said in a warning tone. It had been a while since he had used that tone on his nephew.

He let out another sigh. "We met before."

"When?"

"In Florida."

The older man looked more than surprised. "Florida as in when Rory was on spring break?"

"Exactly like when Rory was on spring break," Jess confessed.

"What did you do?" He went into protective mode.

Jess turned to him, suddenly annoyed at this man who was like a father to him. "Why does it have to be me that did anything?"

"Fine, you didn't do anything," he gave up. "But something happened."

Jess turned to him, surprising his uncle again with his tone and words. "We slept together. Is that what you want to hear?"

"What?" Luke wasn't sure what to say.

"That friendship I have with Rory?" He continued. "It's because we had sex in Florida. And then I left, because you got arrested and she doesn't trust me to let me in as any more than a friend so I take what I get."

"You really like her," he commented to which he was met with silence.

He didn't say anything yet. Jess just shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He figured it was easier to just tell him. Luke already knew the big part of the secret. "Yeah."

"You're an idiot," Luke said.

Now it was Jess' turn to be surprised. "What?"

"You're doing this all wrong, Jess," he said. "Open two-way communication is key to a relationship. I had this friend - let's name him Philip, who thought expressing intimacy was a favor to his partner. But expressions of intimacy should be given freely and frequently. Not that he didn't love Judy but he used it as a bargaining tool."

"Who the hell is Judy?" Jess was so far past confused.

"Philip's wife," Luke answered as if it was obvious. "We call her Judy."

That didn't help Jess either. "Where are you getting this?"

"Life," he shrugged. "I've lived."

"Where? In a Bette Midler movie?" He questioned. This was very weird for his uncle to talk like this and he wanted to make sure Luke knew just how weird.

"I'm trying to help you out," he replied.

"Thanks but I don't need it," Jess said. "I can't make her trust me and I can't change her mind that quickly anyway if I could."

"I know Rory," Luke said. "There was something to make her not trust you."

"I left," he sighed and sat half an inch lower in his chair. "I didn't tell her I was leaving and I wrote this note and I stupidly told my friend to give her it but he couldn't find it until after he came home."

"And how soon after...that you two -" Luke looked uncomfortable as he tried to speak about his nephew sleeping with Rory.

"Did I leave?" He assisted and got a nod in response. "The morning after."

"Jess!" He exclaimed.

"That was when you called!" He said back. "A little bit after she left."

Luke shook his head, covered his face with hands then removed them. "No wonder she doesn't trust you."

"I know," he sighed and rubbed his own hands over his face. "I fucked up."

"Did you explain this to her?" He asked. "Why you left?"

"That's probably the only reason she's talking to me," Jess told him with a half smirk.

Luke couldn't help but return the expression and stood up. "Talk to her again, Jess."

"I'll try," he sighed. "Not sure what good it could do."

"It can do plenty good," he said then turned back to his nephew. "So. You and Rory - you two really...?"

The smirk wanted to grow bigger at the way his uncle's voice trailed off. His face stayed the same as he just stared at his real guardian. Neither said anything and Luke just went upstairs.

Jess sat downstairs in the diner a little bit longer as he considered all the things he learned tonight and was asked of tonight. Maybe he would have something to look forward to tomorrow after all.

 **A/N: Thank you for the review about the stepfather correction! I don't know what I was thinking typing that but hopefully it should be fixed now.**

 **And I really wanted to keep that Philip and Judy speech in there of Luke's. I'm sure when I get to raincoats and recipes, I'll use less show dialogue and mix it together but I couldn't resist in this chapter lol**


	11. There's a stripper in the diner

"There is so much joy around me, I'm gonna hurl," Rory said into her phone as she walked through the halls of Yale.

"What's going on?" Lorelai asked on the other end of the line.

"There is so much boisterous high giving going on right now," she whispered in an angry tone.

She heard a sad sound escape her mother. "Kids are in party mode, huh?"

"They're partying like there is no tomorrow," she told her. "And there is no tomorrow for those who have no finals left and are done. Unlike me, who still has one left and on a Saturday of all days."

"But you'll be done soon, too," she tried to comfort her.

Rory sighed. "I should stand between them and have them high five from opposite sides of my head. Put me out of my misery."

"You will done soon," she promised. "And then you will be high giving just as much as these guys are, trust me."

"Promise?" She said.

"Cross my heart and hope to die," Lorelai replied.

"I just wish I was done, too," said Rory sadly. "I mean, I love it here, don't get me wrong but all this joy and freedom from everyone around me is driving me nuts."

"And it takes a lot to drive Rory Gilmore nuts," her mother teased.

"Yes it does, as a matter of fact," she said.

"Paris still off with the professor?" Lorelai wondered.

"I'm not sure," she answered. "I haven't seen her yet today but her side of the room looked different so maybe she stopped by."

"So you haven't even seen her?" She asked.

"No," she shook her head and passed through another crowd of cheering students. "But I'm worried about her. She wanted to end it then she didn't and I wonder what changed her mind."

"Maybe she just loves him," Lorelai said.

Rory made a face. "Okay that just sounds too weird when you think about who its about."

"I'm not trying to make it weird," she added. "Maybe that's just why."

The door to her dorm was now close and Rory let herself in and shut the door behind her. "Maybe I'm just reflecting my own relationships on it."

"How do you mean?" Lorelai asked. "Dean? Or that guy from spring break?"

She swallowed hard at the thought of spring break. Lorelai still didn't know it was Jess down in Florida and she wasn't sure she wanted her to know about it yet. "Yeah. Both."

"Well, Dean is engaged," her mother listed off. "He's off the list. And the guy from spring break? He's a jerk. He left after he got what he wanted. A guy like that doesn't deserve a second thought."

"Mom -" she said, almost ready to tell her when she saw Paris, Tana and Chester.

"What?" She asked. "Something wrong?"

"No," Rory tried. "I have to go, okay?"

"Okay," she said, sounding confused.

"Nothing's wrong," she explained. "I just found Paris, that's all."

"Oh," Lorelai sounded relieved. "I thought the subject was getting too much and I was prepared to apologize profusely so you wouldn't hang up."

"I'll let you do that later, then," she smiled.

"Deal," there was a smile in her voice, too.

They said their goodbyes and Rory walked herself right into whatever conversation her roommates and Chester were having. Tana peered over at her and grinned. "Chester lost a bet with me so today he can only speak clichés."

"Well, that sounds...interesting," Rory commented, unsure what to make of that.

"Its so much fun!" Tana gushed.

"Its always fun until someone gets hurt," Chester said and then took a drink from his cup.

Paris rolled her eyes, which only increased when she saw Janet walk into the room. "I'm leaving now, you guys. Hey, Rory, did you take a funky monkey?"

She made a face. "A funky monkey?"

Janet nodded. "We poured all the alcohol we had in a bowl and each took a cup. Tastes gross but does the trick."

"I'm not having one so yours is in the fridge," Tana pointed out.

Chester grinned. "Lips that touch wine shall never touch mine."

"How long is he doing this for?" Paris asked Tana.

No one answered her as Janet came to stand in front of Rory. "I guess this is goodbye."

"I'm so sad out little clique is breaking up," Paris said, strangely out of character.

They all turned to look at her. Janet leaned closer to Rory. "I think her cup is still in her system."

That gained an eye roll from the girl in question. "You never get emotional at goodbyes?"

"With people I like," Janet said. "Bye."

A quick hug to Rory later and she was out of the room. Chester managed to excuse himself with head motions, not having been able to think of a cliche.

Tana used that opportunity to grab a huge board that leaned against a wall. "I made a collage of everyone in the building and I'm having as many people possible to sign it."

"Oh, that sounds nice," Rory said as Tana handed her and Paris both a pen. They each signed.

"Where am I on this thing?" Paris asked.

Tana searched the photos until she found the ones she looked for. "There's one of you right here, there's one with Rory. Here's another one of you two. And Paris, is it weird I have one of you and your ex-boyfriend?"

"No," she shook her head once. "Jamie and me are very much over. We've both moved on. I wish him the best."

"That's a nice outlook," Rory smiled at her friend.

"What about you, Rory?" Tana asked.

She almost tensed. "What about me?"

"I haven't seen you with anyone," she said. "Is there anyone?"

"Nope, nobody," she shrugged with her best smile.

Paris gave her a look and when Tana left the room, she turned to her friend. "Are you forgetting about Jess?"

"Ssh," she hushed her. "And no. I'm not forgetting about him."

"So you're lying?" She asked.

"I'm not lying," Rory stuffed her hands in her pocket awkwardly. "Everyone doesn't need to know about a spring break one-night stand that I had."

"A spring break one-night stand who is currently in your hometown and you talk to on an almost-daily basis," Paris pointed out.

"Nothing is happening between us," she sighed. "Sure, in Florida, it did but not anymore. We're just friends."

"Well, all right," Paris sighed too, but more because she didn't think she'd get a different answer. "Just remember, I'm prepared to tell you I told you so."

"There will be nothing to say I told you do to," Rory called back as Paris left the room and into her room. Once she was officially out of the room, she whispered, "I don't think so."

...

"Have you given her the note yet?" Asked Caleb.

Jess shook his head though his friend couldn't see. "She's not here."

"Well, where is she?" He wondered. "Didn't you go there to see her?"

"I came for my uncle," he corrected. "It'd be good to see her if she was here but she's not so..."

"Don't give me that crap," he said. "I know you, Jess. You don't get serious about many girls or at all actually."

"And your point is?" Jess said though he already sensed what would come.

"That you obviously like this girl," he said. "Its more than just getting in her pants because you did and you still talk to her. So either you really like her or she's really that -"

"If you finish your sentence, I promise it will be your last," he threatened and looked around him that no one heard. He was in the apartment though so the only person he had to fear was Luke...and Lorelai.

The last thing he needed was Lorelai to hear his conversation.

Caleb must have smirked at the threat. "See? I knew it. You like her."

"And if I did?" Jess replied. "So what?"

"Then you need to tell her how you feel," he turned serious.

He scoffed. "She really doesn't want to hear that."

"How do you know?" He countered.

"Because I do," he rubbed his hand that didn't hold the phone over his eyes.

"That's bullshit," Caleb just said.

"Maybe that's the way it goes," he replied.

"Fine," he said. "Be that way. Don't tell her. But if she does feel that way and you miss your chance..."

"Bye, Caleb," he said and his friend replied his own departure then hung up.

Jess walked over to the stereo as he tried to unclog his thoughts from what Caleb told him to do and what he told his uncle last night.

This morning, he had seen Lorelai when he was reading on a bench. She didn't seem to be in a murderous mood so either, she was okay with him and Rory or Luke didn't tell her they slept together. He figured it was more likely the latter.

He pressed play on the stereo and a man's voice screaming about love shouted at him. Jess shut it off quickly. "What the hell...?"

He clicked eject on the cassette player and saw what it was. As quickly as he opened it, he shut the tray that held the tape. Luke, for whatever reason, had listened to this. Jess would let him keep his privacy unless he wanted to come clean.

Jess grabbed his keys and thought fast of an excuse to get out of the apartment. Batteries seemed like an easy excuse. He walked down the stairs into the diner and heard some discussion about turkey legs and then a woman told Luke to take his pants off. Maybe he should stay upstairs.

Deciding against it, he pushed aside the curtain and saw Luke stood at the counter with a giant turkey in front of him. Liz and a bunch of other woman were seated at a table and he saw her squeal in her seat when he appeared.

"I'm going out to get something," he whispered to his uncle.

Luke eyed him suspiciously as if it was code for 'I'm gonna go have sex with Rory again'. Or so Jess thought that was what it meant. "For what?"

"Batteries," he said, his inner thoughts came back to him.

Liz jumped out of her seat. "Jess! Come meet my oldest friends."

"Watch the one on the left," Luke warned.

"Girls, this is Jess," she led him by the shoulders to the table and showed him off to the group.

"Hello, handsome," the one of the left that his uncle just warned him about said.

The rest of the women said hello's as well then Liz continued. "Jess is gonna walk me down the aisle."

"I never agreed to that," he objected.

Liz waved it off. "You will. Nothing would make me happier than my baby walking me down the aisle."

Jess sighed and looked over at Luke than back to his mother. "Okay. Fine."

"Oh!" She exclaimed and hugged him. "Thank you!"

The one on the left put her chin on her hand and smiled. "Do we get turns now?"

"Watch it, Carrie," Liz warned while she still beamed and let go of Jess. "This is my son."

Carrie shrugged. "I'm just asking."

Luke coughed behind him, obvious to him he did it to cover a laugh. He was just about to call him out on it when a man dressed as a delivery man walked in.

"Is there a Liz Danes here?" The man asked.

"That's me," Liz sat down as she answered.

"Got a package for you," the man told her.

Jess quickly knew what was going on and leaned back by his uncle. "Have fun."

"With what?" He asked, still in the dark.

Jess said nothing as he left the diner. The man inside had began to take off his shirt and Jess waved at Luke, who looked very appalled at what was going on in his diner.

On his way to the store, Jess pulled his phone out and called someone. "Hello?"

"There is a stripper in the diner right now," he said.

"Jess?" Rory asked. "Did I just hear you right?"

"Did you hear there's a stripper in the diner?" He asked.

"Then I did hear right," she laughed. "I'm a little afraid to ask."

"Oh, its no big deal," he told her. "Just Liz having a bachelorette party on Luke's tables."

Another laugh. "Eating there will never be the same again."

Jess smirked at that. "Does that mean you're gonna be coming back soon?"

"Maybe," she said. "I have one more final to take care of. But I have Friday night dinner then I'm here until its over."

"Huh," he said.

"What?" She wondered.

"Just wondering if maybe I should come by," he admitted.

"Jess," she said his name thoughtfully.

He didn't understand why. "What?"

"This friends thing, it works, right?" Rory asked.

"But only by phone?" He guessed. "You really think it'd be that hard to be around each other?"

"Not hard," she backed up. "I don't really know how to explain it."

Jess stopped on the sidewalk right in front of the doors to Doose's market. "Try."

"Maybe...maybe its hard for me," she confessed.

"Oh," he said then remembered the phone call with Caleb. "Well, maybe its hard for me too."

"Really?" She asked quietly.

"Really," he nodded.

"Oh," she said. "I wasn't sure - I mean, I know you said you felt something in Florida but I didn't know you still do."

"I do," he admitted truthfully. "It is kinda nice to know its not one-sided, though."

The smile in Rory's voice was clear in her next words. "Yeah, it is."

"There's nothing to be afraid of," he told her. "Whatever this is, you and me, maybe its how it's supposed to happen. Or not happen, I guess."

"Okay," she said.

"Okay?" He curiously asked.

"Come see me after the wedding," Rory replied.

Jess smiled. "Okay."

"Hey, Jess?" She said. "I believe you, for what its worth, that what happened wasn't one-sided. And that it isn't now."

"Its worth plenty," he told her. "And hey, this year when my birthday comes around, maybe you could come hang out."

"Oh?" Rory sounded amused. "Tell me when that is and I'll mark it down."

"June 16th," Jess said.

"Going in my book now," she let out a small laugh that wasn't exactly a laugh but not a giggle. "October 8th."

At first he was confused but then it clicked. "Your birthday?"

"Yes, sir," Rory said as seriously as she could.

"Going in my book, too," he told her. And it would, go in his phone, at least.

"Good to know," she said just as seriously then there was a pause. "I hate to cut this short but I actually have some more packing to do -"

"Right," Jess shuffled his feet. "Pack. I gotta pick some stuff up anyway."

"Okay," she said softly now.

"And about after the wedding," Jess said. "I know you just want to be friends and I know you want us to get to know each other first before anything happens between us."

"Thank you," Rory said. "I know it seems unreasonable considering what did happen..."

"Not unreasonable," he shook his head. "Even understandable. Just know I'm here, okay, Rory?"

"I know," her voice was still soft and he could have sworn she was smiling. "Thank you."

"No problem," he said.

"Okay, I really do have to go," she laughed now.

"Bye, Rory," he said as soft as her tone had been moments ago.

Her voice went soft again, too. "Bye, Jess. See you later."

They hung up and he took a moment before he finally entered the market. Jess headed straight for the batteries and grabbed any pack of double A's then headed for the line.

He was second in line as he grabbed his money out of his pocket. When he lifted his head, he saw a familiar looking guy. It clicked and Jess remembered this as the guy who he saw with Rory the night of the eggs.

Kirk, who he knew Luke usually got annoyed at, was the cashier and he said out loud the name of each item the customer in front of him was buying. "How do you like that body lotion, Dean? Mother always requests I buy her iy but I don't know how well they are."

"They're for my fiancee, Kirk," the one named Dean replied. "I don't know how they are."

"Oh," Kirk sounded sad. "Will you ask Lindsey how she likes them?"

"Sure, Kirk," Dean said and he paid.

Jess moved up with his small purchase of batteries once Dean left the store. While he was rung up, he wondered about why Dean was meeting up with Rory at night if he was engaged. He shook his head away from those thoughts and paid the total.

...

Emily, Rory, and Lorelai sat at the table for Friday night dinner in the expansive Gilmore house. Emily put down her fork and knife and turned to her granddaughter. "I'm so sorry you have a final tomorrow. I thought you'd be free as a bird tonight."

"Its all right, Grandma," Rory smiled at her.

"You could have stayed at school and studied if you needed to," she continued.

"I'm good on study time," she nodded. "I'm almost done packing, too. Just a few more things left."

"That's good to hear," Emily smiled. "Are you sure I'm not cutting into time you should have stayed at Yale?"

"The music is different," Lorelai interrupted.

"Excuse me?" Emily asked her daughter.

"You and Dad usually play classical music," she said. "This is some chick."

"Your father is out of town," she said. "I'm trying something different."

"Dad would hate this music, wouldn't he?" Lorelai went on.

Emily decided to go back to the topic of finals and avoided Lorelai's questions. "What time are you done with your final tomorrow?"

"About noon," Rory told her.

"And there are no friends left behind with you?"

"Nope, just me."

"And you have no boyfriend?" She wondered.

Rory thought of Jess. "No, not really."

"Why, do you?" Lorelai asked which earned her a glare.

"Well, okay," Emily said. "I was just wondering because we don't really talk about your love life anymore. You used to mention that Dean all the time."

"Well, me and him broke up a long time ago, Grandma, you know this," Rory replied.

"I just want to be in the loop," she answered.

"Yes, it is hard being out of the loop," Lorelai said. "Hey, where's Dad out of town to?"

"He's in Philadelphia, Lorelai," she sighed. "What is with all of these questions?"

"No reason," she smiled big. "Just I wanted to invite you and dad to my test run, actually. Its in a few weeks and me and Sookie are gathering all out friends and family to come."

"Oh, my, that sounds lovely," Emily smiled in return. "I would love to come see your inn."

"Really?" Rory asked.

Lorelai seemed just as confused by the enthusiasm. "Yeah, really?"

"Yes, of course," she said. "Did you want me say no?"

"No, no I didn't," Lorelai shook her head.

"Then it's settled," Emily stood up. "Excuse me, I'm going to go check on the souffle and see what's taking so long."

She left the room and Rory turned to her mother. "What is going on?"

"I'm trying to get her to fess up about the separation," she whispered.

"No, me!" Rory whispered. "Everyone is asking me about my love life lately."

"Everyone who?" She asked. "That was not about you. That was about evading my questions."

"Well, can't she evade them with another topic?" Rory wondered.

"Is that about her bringing up Dean?" Lorelai asked. "Or is it spring break guy?"

"No," she crossed her arms.

"Is it about Jess?" Lorelai asked.

Rory half glared at her. "It's not about Jess and it wouldn't be because we're only friends."

"Okay," Lorelai put her hands out as a peace offering. "Just I've seen him around here and there. He seems like a good guy. He's close with Luke. I mean, you could do worse."

"You think I don't know any of that?" She countered.

"I didn't say that -"

"You implied."

"What's wrong, hun?" Lorelai sounded concerned. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she crossed her arms even tighter around her. "I just wish people would stop asking me about relationships or even about Jess."

"Someone else is asking about Jess?" She wondered.

"I'm gonna throw a roll at you," Rory picked one up teasingly but turned serious once she put it down. "I just want to focus on my final tomorrow and get through dinner. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, sweetie, of course," Lorelai said. "That's fine."

Emily walked back in and told them the souffle should be served shortly. Whatever tension had passed through while she was out of the room disappeared and the continued on with the dinner.

 **A/N: I gave Jess a birthday! I decided he needs one and I want to keep his birthday the same in all the universes of my fics so since June was not a part of NYG, I thought it was perfect. I didn't want his birthday to just be passed by without a mention in there so it worked for me. I hope its good!**

 **Droolia - Not weird at all if you had asked :) I'm glad you saw them and that you had wanted to. He really is a great person to meet tbh.**


	12. Hilarious sock designs

After Rory had finished her last final, she headed back to her dorm to get the last of her packing done. She peered into the fridge and took out her Funky Monkey as requested and took a sip. The girls were right, it was disgusting. Rory took another sip and put it down on a finished box.

Heading to the stereo, she blasted music as loud as she could. The campus was basically empty aside from the students left over from her final. After she finished with her stuff, Rory planned on going out for a bit before coming back.

The non-date with Jess tonight had her nerves set on fire if she was being honest. Rory wasn't sure what she was thinking agreeing to him coming here. She knew she liked him...a lot. Usually that was considered a good thing for a relationship but she was also afraid of what that would mean.

If she let herself give into her feelings, there was the possibility she'd get hurt. That possibility was always there, of course, but if she let him in, he could leave again. That thought escalated evem more when she remembered Jess actually lived in New York City.

A half hour into her packing, Rory was startled by another person in her dorm. She sighed in relief when she saw it was her grandmother. Emily smiled brightly and happily at her granddaughter.

"Grandma, hi!" Rory said. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean what am I doing here?" She smiled. "My granddaughter just finished her first year of college. Your finals are all done now?"

"All done," Rory nodded. "I'm just getting the last of my packing done."

"Oh, Rory, why won't you let me hire someone to do this for you?" She asked as she looked around the room at the boxes.

Rory looked around at them, too. "I like doing it myself. I know where everything is."

"I suppose that's true," Emily looked back at her granddaughter. "It is hard to find good work nowadays anyway."

"That's true," Rory agreed even though she had no clue what hiring anyone was like.

"I was having lunch with a friend of mine today, Cassie Sullivan," Emily said. "I can't remember if I told you this but she has a son who is also a freshman here. Graham."

"Oh?" Rory faked wonderment. She felt like she knew where this was headed.

"Have you met him?" She asked.

"Can't say that I have," she shook her head.

"Would you like to?"

"Um -"

"Rory?" Her grandmother questioned.

"Is this a set-up?" She whispered. "Like, is he here right now and he's gonna ask me out?"

"He is here," she answered. "Do you not want to meet him? I can arrange another time if you'd like."

"No, Grandma," she shifted her feet carefully and was glad she only had a couple of sips of her drink. "I'm - I'm not looking for anyone to date right now."

"Who said anything about dating?" Emily wondered. "Just meet him and see how you feel."

"Is that why you asked if I had a boyfriend?" Rory asked.

"I just wanted to know if you had one before I introduced you to Graham," she explained.

Rory nodded once then looked right at her grandma. "There is someone. We're not together but I like him and I don't want to meet anyone else."

Emily was silent for what seemed like a while. Whatever she searched for in Rory's face, she must have found it. "All right. Let me just go talk to him."

"Thank you, grandma," Rory smiled softly.

Emily left the room and Rory let out a big sigh of relief. No matter what the thing with Jess was or wasn't, she didn't want to date anyone else while she figured out how she felt.

A moment later, she wasn't alone in the room anymore as her grandmother returned. She walked right to Rory with a smile. "Now tell me about this someone."

"He's just a guy I met," she replied.

That wasn't enough for Emily Gilmore. "Does he go here?"

"Um, no," she shook her head. "He actually lives in New York."

"New York!" She exclaimed. "How did you meet him?"

Rory didn't want to lie but she didn't want to say the whole truth, either. "He's visiting Stars Hollow."

"From New York?" She asked.

"He knows luke," Rory said awkwardly.

"Oh," Emily said.

"And his birthday is actually coming soon so I was thinking about maybe getting him a present," Rory covered to try to transition the conversation.

"A birthday!" Emily sounded more excited now. "That sounds like we need to do some shopping."

"We?" She repeated curiously.

"Yes, we," Emily replied as if it was silly to have to explain. "Come on, it's early. We can go out now while I'm here."

"Okay, grandma," she said while still confused on what just happened. She grabbed a purse to bring along and threw out the cup of Funky Monkey when Emily didn't notice. They headed out the door together with Rory locking the room behind her.

...

"Don't you have a full length mirror?" TJ asked from another room in the apartment.

"Don't need a full length mirror, TJ," luke replied.

"You don't like seeing your bottom half?" He asked back.

Luke groaned. "If I wanted to see my bottom half, I'd just look down."

Jess walked in the apartment right that second and stopped right in his tracks. "What did I just walk into?"

"You got the shoe polish?" Luke asked and ignored his question.

"Yes," Jess held it up for his uncle to see. "Chunky show polish can rest in peace now."

Luke took it from his hands and sat down. "Who knew polish expires?"

"Not you," he smirked.

"He look nervous," TJ said as he entered the room.

Luke and Jess looked between each other cluelessly, neither knowing who he meant. TJ gave Luke a pointed look and they realized their answer. "I'm not nervous."

"You shouldn't be," TJ said. "It's just a first date. Me? I'm having getting shackled."

"Right," Jess nodded. "First date with lorelai, uncle Luke. How you feeling?"

"I feel fine," he grumbled. "I don't see why we're making a big deal."

"It is a big deal!" TJ said. "I'm getting married, you're saying lorelai. We're both with foxes, Luke! The only one alone here is Jess though I don't know why."

"'cuse me?" Jess said.

"You're going stag to the wedding," he pointed out. "But hey maybe you'll meet someone there. Guy, girl, what do you like?"

"Geez," Jess groaned and walked to where his clothes were to change into.

"He has a point," Luke joined in on the tease. "You are the only one without a date tonight."

"As a matter of fact, no, I'm not," he shrugged. "Its not technically a date but I do have plans later."

"What?" Luke asked, surprised. "You're leaving later and meeting who?"

"Rory, actually," he said and didn't notice the looks on the two older men's faces.

"Way to go," TJ said. Both Luke and Jess stared at him. "What?"

"You're meeting Rory later?" Luke asked.

"Yeah," he said easily. "We're gonna hang out."

Luke wanted more information it seemed. "Is she coming here?"

"No," Jess shook his head and headed for the bathroom with his clothes. "I'm going to Yale."

"Yale, how prestigious," TJ nodded in approval.

Luke followed and stood by the door. "You're going to go see her at Yale? Tonight?"

"Yep," Jess answered from the other side of the door.

"Isnt the campus empty now?" He asked. "Wouldn't you rather she come here and maybe we could all do something. She could come to the wedding."

"She has packing to finish," Jess said. "It makes more sense to go there."

"You sure?" He prodded. "She could finish up now and drive down then tonight."

Jess opened the door, dressed and ready already. "Do you not want me go?"

"What?" Luke pretended to be surprised. "No."

"Hey, TJ?" Jess called. "Why don't you check out the square for the wedding? Make sure Kirk didn't screw up?"

"You want me to leave, don't you?" He asked and gained a glare from the younger man in the room. "I'm going."

As soon as he was out of the room, Jess turned to his uncle. "Is this because of what I told you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Luke said and finally moved away from the door.

"Really?" Jess asked. "So me telling you that Rory and I had sex, that never happened?"

"Geez," Luke muttered. "Okay, fine. Maybe it is."

Jess crossed his arms. "We're just hanging out. Did you always object to me having friends or did I just not notice?"

"I'm not objecting to you having " he told her. "I'm objecting to you and... Rory alone in an abandoned campus."

"What do you think is gonna happen?" He asked.

"You know what I think is gonna happen," he replied.

"No," Jess sat down. "Tell me what I'm going to do to her."

"You're not gonna do anything," he told him. "Because you're only friends, right?"

"Right," the younger man agreed. "Besides, if anyone did happen to wander by, I could just put a sock on the door at her dorm."

"There will be no socks," he warned and saw his nephew smirked at him. "That's funny? That's your idea of a joke? Hanging socks on the door?"

"Depends on the sock design," he said. "Could be hilarious."

"Jess," he warned. For all the closeness they had, there was always moments when Luke acted like he was his father. Jess was both grateful and annoyed at this at times.

"Nothing is going to happen," Jess got serious. "We're gonna finish her packing. We're gonna get food then I'll leave."

He eyed his nephew skeptically. "That's all?"

"Well I was gonna ask to see her mattress sheets before I go," he joked but then answered honestly. "Yes, that's all."

"Okay," Luke nodded. "You know why I worry right?"

"Because Rory is Lorelai's daughter and you're looking out for her and don't want her to get hurt," he said.

"Yeah, that and..." Luke took a breath. "I don't want you to get hurt, either."

"Thanks," he said in a low voice, having known that already but it was nice to hear.

The door burst open and in walked TJ. "You gotta come see what Kirk did to the gazebo."

...

"I don't think he would like anything here, Grandma," Rory said.

"Nonsense," Emily said as they strolled near the entrance of a store that sold things very much out of Rory's price range. "They have things for everyone here."

"Maybe we can try a bookstore," she suggested.

"A book?" Her grandmother looked aghast.

"He likes books," Rory replied.

"You can't buy a young man that you like a book, Rory," she told her and went to head inside the store.

Rory was about to follow when a window of another store caught her eye as she looked around. She looked at the item in question and thought of how perfect it would be for Jess. She could already see him in it.

"Rory!" Emily shouted as she shook her granddaughter out of her thoughts. "Don't just stand there. Come inside."

She shook her head. "I found something."

"What?" Her eyes followed to the window. "That Jean jacket? It's hideous!"

"It's perfect," Rory smiled. "I wanna see how much it is."

"Well, all right," she agreed, glad she wasn't suggesting a book again and followed her into the store.

...

"Liz, you almost ready?" Jess asked from the doorway of Miss Patty's

"Almost," she called out.

Jess walked himself inside and made sure no one followed. He was afraid of Liz's friend, Carrie, following him. He caught sight of her and sighed in relief until he noticed she was talking to Luke and Lorelai.

"Oh, damn it!" Liz yelled which caused Jess to turn back and look at her.

"What happened?" He asked.

"I ripped my dress," she groaned as she tried to see where exactly the tear was. "I sat down for a minute then I went to stand up..."

He made a face. "Can you fix it?"

"You know I'm not the household skills type," she replied.

Yes, I do, Jess thought but kept to himself. "I'm gonna go see Luke if knows anyone who can help."

He waited for Carrie to walk away then he himself finally walked up to Luke and Lorelai. "Uncle Luke, there's a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Luke asked him, obviously jumping to the conclusion that Liz was gonna bail.

"Liz ripped her dress," he said. "And she can't fix it. Do you know anyone who can?"

"No, I don't -" Luke began to say as he was cut off.

Lorelai smiled brightly. "I can sew. How bad is it?"

"I didn't see," Jess told her.

"She's at Miss Patty's?" Lorelai asked and Jess nodded. She quickly stood up and Luke let her pass as she headed to the dance studio.

Jess started to follow but Luke stopped him. "Does Lorelai know about your plans later?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I guess it depends on if Rory told her."

"And do you think she did?" He asked.

Another shrug. "No, I don't. But that's none of my business."

"So Lorelai doesn't know about..." Luke's voice faded as he didn't want to finish the sentence.

"Not that I know of, no," he replied and turned to leave. "I should get back."

"Jess?" He called which made his nephew stop. "Thanks, you know, for doing this. It means a lot to your mom."

He didn't reply but instead just nodded. Jess headed back to Miss Patty's, ready for his part in the festivities to be over.

...

When Rory and Emily got back to the dorm, they had plenty more bags than when they began. Both women put their bags down and Rory sat on one of the heavier boxes while Emily stood, not having found a suitable place to sit.

"Where do you sit in here?" She asked. "There's no chairs."

"The chairs only moved out yesterday," Rory explained. "But then I was in my room, studying on my bed. I guess I didn't think about what to do with a guest."

"And yet that boy is coming over tonight?" Her grandmother asked.

Rory let out a small breath. "He is."

Emily looked around the room again. "Where will he sit?"

"We'll sit on the floor, Grandma," she spread her arms out to show how much room there is.

She looked appalled. "You can't sit on the floor!"

"He won't mind," she told her. "I'm not even sure we're staying here. We might go out to eat."

"Well, I suppose that isn't that bad," Emily sighed. "Are you going to tell me who he is?"

"He's just a friend that I like talking to," Rory covered. It wasn't exactly a lie.

"Does your mother know about him?" She asked curiously.

"She knows about him," Rory nodded. "She knows him. Actually, they are the same event right now."

"Oh?" She seemed surprised. "And she knows this young man is coming over tonight?"

"She doesn't," she replied.

Emily seemed even surprised at that. "Oh."

"I'm not embarrassed of him," Rory added. "I'm just not sure how weird it will be because she knows him."

"Do you want my advice, Rory?" She suggested and her granddaughter nodded. "I think you should tell her, no matter how...weird you think it will be. Lord knows how much I wish me and your mother were closer. I don't want to see you lose it."

Rory smiled softly at her grandmother. "Thank you. And I will. I'm just trying to find the words."

"Okay," she nodded with a small smile. "I should get going. I had a lovely day, Rory."

"I did, too," she smiled back. "Thank you for coming."

"Of course," Emily smiled bigger as they said their goodbyes and she headed out. She left the bags that were Rory's in her room and was gone.

Rory sat in silence as she thought of today. She wanted to tell her mother, she really did. The idea of telling her she was hanging out with Jess, having dinner at her dorm - it reminded her too much of Lorelai's questions the other night about their relationship or lack thereof.

But they were just friends. Yes, Florida haopened but now they were only friends and she liked spending time with him. "I'm gonna tell her. It's just dinner."

She grabbed her phone out of her pocket and hit the speed dial. Halfway through the rings, Rory realized Lorelai would be at the wedding so she might not be able to answer. That feeling quickly went away as the phone picked up.

"Rory!" Lorelai exclaimed. "Hey!"

"Hey!" Rory laughed. "You sound pretty happy."

"I am!" She laughed in return. "You know, when I get married, I want a Renaissance faire fest."

"I'm guessing it's a nice wedding then?" Rory challenged.

"Very nice," she agreed. "And Luke is quite the date. I mean, we've mostly been sitting but mocking has been happening."

"No dancing?"

"I don't think Luke dances."

"Get him to dance," Rory urged.

"I can try, kid," Lorelai said. "I'm not sure if it'll work though."

"I have something to tell you and I don't want you to react too much like you," Rory changed the subject.

Lorelai quickly responded, "Too much like me? What does that mean?"

"Jumping on details or to conclusions," she explained.

"I do not do that," she feigned shock.

"Mom," Rory said.

"Okay," she agreed. "Tell me and I promise I will act cool."

"You remember how you asked me the guy I was on the phone with a while ago?" She started.

"Yes," Lorelai replied hesitantly. "The guy you were just friends with."

"It's Jess," Rory took a deep breath. "We've struck this friendship and we talk a lot on the phone. I didn't want to tell you how much we talk because I didn't want it to get weird because he's Luke's nephew."

"That's not weird, sweets," she said. "I mean, you said you're friends. What's going on? Is something bothering you again about him? Is he bothering you?"

"No, actually..." She sighed. "Me and Jess actually have plans tonight."

"Tonight?" She let out a quick laugh. "But he's here. At the wedding. I'm looking at him right now."

"He's coming here after the wedding," Rory explained.

"Oh," Lorelai said.

"What kind of oh is that?" She wondered.

"Just an oh," she told her daughter. "I didn't know you were close enough for him to travel to Yale to see you."

"It's only 22.8 miles," Rory defended.

"You know the exact distance?" She asked. "I don't think you ever did."

"Jess looked it up to see how far it is from Stars Hollow," was her reply.

"Oh," Lorelai repeated.

Rory frowned. "Okay. Now you have to tell me about that oh."

"Nothing," she said. "Just when I said you could do worse, I didn't expect you to actually go for it."

"I'm not going for it," Rory said. "We're just friends."

"Your face said differently when you were on the phone with him, Hun," Lorelai replied. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I won't," she actually smiled now. "I just like talking to him and I guess he doesn't hate talking to me. It's nice."

"Do you like him?"

"Of course I like him if we're friends."

"Not like as a friends."

"Oh."

"Do you?" She asked again.

"Maybe," she answered.

"So yes?" Lorelai saw right through her.

"A little," Rory put her head on her hand and leaned on it. "He's easy to talk to."

"Does he like you?" She continued.

"I think so," she admitted, not wanting to spill his feelings just in case.

"Then I really want you to be safe," Lorelai said. "And I don't just mean in a dirty way, though...you know what I mean. Watch out for that heart, all right?"

"I am," Rory nodded. "I will."

"Okay," Lorelai whispered. "I have to get back to the wedding because Lukeis giving me a glare he reserves for when I answer my cell phone in the diner despite we are outside."

"Okay," Rory laughed lightly. "Have a good night, Mom. You be safe, too."

Lorelai gasped in a teasing tone. "My! What kind of a girl do you think I am?"

"Do you really want an answer?" Rory challenged.

"Nah, that's okay," she told her. "I love you, sweets. Have a good...night."

"I will," Rory nodded again.

They hung up and Lorelai tucked her phone into Luke's jacket pocket where she had stashed it. She glanced across the table and saw Jess sit down with his plate. A sigh escaped her and she wondered about the night ahead, for both herself and her daughter.


	13. After the wedding

Jess checked his watch for what felt like the twentieth time. He was more than eager to get out of here and not only because of his later plans. Dealing with Liz had never been easy. If it hadn't been for Luke, Jess was sure he wouldn't have been headed for much in his life.

There was moments when he believed he'd have flunked out of school without his uncle's help. He passed by just enough only because Luke had made sure he went. Jess didn't think he'd have listened if he hadn't been there for him as much as he had, there to pick his mother up when needed too.

After he finished his food, Jess stood up with his plate when his mother stopped him. She smiled as she stood in front of him, her new husband at her side.

"Here he is," Liz smiled. "One of my heroes."

Jess didn't seem to agree. "I didn't do anything."

"You walked me down the aisle," she said. "That's doing plenty."

"It was nothing," he shrugged, nervous of the praise.

"It was something," Liz nodded then noticed his empty plate. "Where you going?"

"Throw this out," he said.

"You ate enough?" She asked.

Jess nodded while he wondered what TJ so quiet. He didn't object. "Yeah, I had more than enough."

She didn't seem convinced. "You eating okay in New York?"

"I eat fine," he told her, leaving out how sometimes they can't make rent.

"You leaving already?" She wondered.

"Was thinking about it," Jess said.

"Plans?" She guessed.

"One of the reasons," he agreed.

"She pretty?" Liz whispered.

That was when TJ finally spoke. "She's that Lorelai's daughter."

"You have plans with Rory?" She gasped happily. "It's like fate!"

"No fate," he shook his head. "Just friends hanging out."

"Just friends?" TJ scoffed. "That Lorelai is hot! And her daughter looks just like her."

"Geez," Jess said, sounding just like Luke.

"She'd be lucky to have someone like my boy, too," she added. "Didn't I tell you he was handsome?"

"I wouldn't kick him out of bed," TJ commented.

Jess grimaced and tried to move around them. "And on that note..."

Liz turned around when he passed her. "Hey, you'll say goodbye when you leave?"

"Will do," he agreed which earned another smile in response.

Jess got rid of his plate and was almost hit when he turned around. To his surprise, Lorelai stood before him, her flower crown had gotten into her hair. "Hi."

"Hi," he replied hesitantly.

"Rory told me you're hanging out tonight," she smiled.

Jess nodded. "Yeah. I was actually thinking of going there now. There's only so much Liz and TJ I can take at a time."

"Understandable," she said. "I'm the same with my parents."

"Rory may have mentioned a deal you have about Friday Night Dinners," he resisted the urge to smirk.

Lorelai sighed. "Oh, she mentioned those? It's my strings, Pinocchio."

"Huh?" He asked.

"When you ask for favors, they rarely come free," she explained. "Therefore, strings, Pinocchio."

"Right," he said as he finally caught the reference.

Lorelai and Jess both felt the stagger in the cinversation. She tried another time, hoping to try to get to know this guy her daughter liked so much. "So what are you guys going tonight?"

"We don't have definite plans," he said. "Probably just watch a movie, get some food."

"Sounds fun," she nodded. "Me and Rory, we have this infamous movie nights we do. We go all out on food and snacks."

"I'll have to stock on stuff before I reach New Haven then," he decided.

"She might have stocked up beforehand," Lorelai pointed out. "But if she isn't sure of plans, she might not have so it's always good to have them just in case."

"Right," Jess agreed. The conversation felt weird and he wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because there was more between him and her daughter that she knew and he felt a little guilty about that.

"I could give you a list of her favorites," she suggested.

"Thanks," he said. "Are you and Uncle Luke doing something after?"

Lorelai giggled and he gave her a questionable look. She noticed and just muttered, "Dirty."

"What?" Then he rethought his words. "Shit. I didn't mean to imply -"

"No, you're fine," she reassured him. "It's this thing I do. Find the dirty in sentences. It doesn't mean you're implying anything about Luke's sex life."

"And now awkward has hit a new quota for the day," Jess told her.

Lorelai just laughed once. "This is awkward, isn't it?"

"A little," he said.

"I thought it was just me," she apologized. "It's just...Rory told me you two had plans and I figured if she likes you, then maybe it'd be nice to have a conversation more than me begging for coffee right?"

"Right," Jess agreed. He was a little stuck on the thought that Rory told her mother she liked him. He wasn't sure she would tell him of their plans and especially not that part. "It would be nice considering Luke wants me here more often."

"You don't live here, right?" She finally asked. "Of course not. Stupid question."

"I live in New York," He said.

"Oh, like Liz," Lorelai said.

Jess tried not to make a face but failed. "Yeah. Like Liz."

"I recognize that expression," she said with a laugh.

"Connects with the small doses are necessary bit," he said with a sort of smile of his own.

Suddenly, Luke walked up to them and he stood beside his date. "You two causing trouble?"

"Plenty," Lorelai answered. "You?"

"TJ is going on and on about his tights," he said. "I'm not sure how much more I can take."

"Poor Uncle Luke," Jess pouted.

"Quiet," Luke warned and Jess laughed. "Don't you have somewhere else to be anyway?"

"Right," Lorelai said. "I don't want to have to beat you up for making my daughter wait. Especially not when its because of me."

"Wait, you know?" Luke asked.

Jess answered for her, knowing already she didn't know everything. "Rory told her about our plans tonight."

Luke gave him a look that Lorelai didn't see because he was still beside her. She spoke instead. "He was gonna leave soon actually, before I came by."

"Because no one can resist Lorelai Gilmore," the older man smiled.

Jess watched them, for the first time seeing just how in love with Lorelai his uncle was. "Then tell her good thing she didn't meet TJ before Liz."

"Oh, I've met worse," she commented. "Next time I see you, remind me to tell you about a guy named Rune."

"What the hell is a Rune?" Jess asked which earned laughs from both of them.

"You'll find out," she said.

"I think I'm actually going to head out now," he said. "Don't want to get there late."

"Good idea," Luke agreed.

"Tell her hi for me," Lorelai said.

Jess told her that he will when he walked away and was stopped by his uncle calling his name. "Yeah?"

"Don't forget to say goodbye to your mom," he told.

Jess just nodded and walked away. When he glanced back one last time, he saw Luke and Lorelai were headed for the dance floor. He smiled to himself as he saw how happy his uncle looked and as did the woman with him.

...

Rory rearranged her boxes again. Everytime she moved them, she was sure there wasn't enough room or something was wrong with how she had them. She dragged them across the floor and hid them in corners, determined to find a right place.

Nothing seemed right, though. She wondered why she was so nervous and flashbacks of Florida came to mind. Soft kisses, gentle touches, Jess's hands tangled in her hair...a flush must have covered her face. She was glad to be alone.

She let out a sigh and decided that this will have to do. Rory knew she'd find something wrong with it no matter how she arranged the room, even though it was only boxes in the room.

Her cell phone chimed with a text message asking her what number her dorm room was. She sent back a quick reply of the number and set her phone back down. Rory's curiosity got the better of her and she grabbed her phone again.

Rory asked if he had left yet then put her phone down again. She looked at it nervously, wondering how close he was. It chimed again with Jess's response and she discovered he wasn't far at all.

It was maybe ten minutes later that she heard a knocking on the door. Rory took a deep breath and reminded herself this was just a friendly thing before she opened the door to reveal Jess. "Hey."

"Hi," she said. "You want to come in?"

"Yeah," he said and she moved aside so he could enter the dorm.

Jess looked around and she felt suddenly more nervous. It felt strange, him looking at this place that's been her home for almost a year. "Nice place."

"You should see it with furniture," she joked.

He looked back at her. "Roommates?

"Gone," she replied. "They finished their classes and finals before me so I'm the only one left."

"On campus?" He raised an eyebrow. "That sounds lonely."

"I'm sure there's people somewhere," Rory told him. "and there's janitors."

"I've heard such good things about janitors on deserted college campuses," he smirked.

Rory laughed. "Yeah. I guess it is kind of creepy to be here."

"When are you leaving?" He asked.

"Tomorrow," she sighed. "I was gonna haul this stuff in daylight rather than night and I figured I'd just stay one more night too then."

"Huh," he said.

Rory cleared her throat and walked more into the room. "So what do you want to do?"

"Do you wanna watch a movie?" He said.

"We unplugged the tv," she said.

"Right," Jess nodded. "What can we do? What do you do? Maybe we can do that."

"I study," she admitted shyly.

"We could study," he said just to make her feel better.

Rory smiled at him. "I'm done with finals. Studying now just seems weird, especially with you."

"Why with me?" He asked. "I could help you study."

"Really?" She put her hands on her hips in a questioning stance. "So if I said, 'Hey, Jess, I wanna be Christine Amanpour, will you help me', you will?"

"I will stand in the middle of the street and shout a foreign language at you," he smiled at her and she realized she loved that smile.

"That could help," she felt her own smile curl back and moved her arms to hang at her side.

"Told you," he said.

"Why don't we order a pizza?" Rory suggested. "I mean, I don't really feel like going to a restaurant and I don't know about you, but pizza sounds really good right now."

"Pizza sounds good," he agreed, leaving out how he ate at the wedding.

"What do you want on it?" She asked as she grabbed her phone.

"Whatever you want is fine with me," he told her.

"I'm not sure you're ready for a Gilmore style pizza yet," she grinned.

"Is that a challenge?" He moved closer to her.

"Maybe," she replied. "You wanna try to take me on?"

"Maybe," Jess took her word. "But I have taken you on before and that was pretty amazing after all."

Rory froze and he instantly regretted his words. What happened between them was still a sore subject and he knew even in joking manner, it was too soon.

"I'm sorry," he said. "That was stupid."

"No, just..." She shook her head. "We can't pretend it didn't happen. It did and what you said is true. It was amazing. It was the most amazing night of my life, actually."

"Really?" He asked and was answered with a slow nod. "Mine, too."

"Have you -" Rory closed her mouth, afraid to ask.

"Have I what?" he wondered.

She took a deep breath then finished her question. "Before that night, had you - was there a lot of girls?"

Jess laughed which made her more nervous about the answer now. "No. There have been exactly two girls before you."

"Oh," she said.

"Not what you were expecting?" He asked.

"I guess I just thought itd be a bigger number," she confessed.

Jess nodded, laughter gone. "What about you?"

"What about me?" She said.

"How many have there been before me?" He said the words slowly.

"Oh," she swallowed. "Um...none. Before you or...or after you."

"So I was..." Jess tried the words but they didn't come out. "Wow."

"Yeah," she whispered.

"I really am an asshole," Jess muttered.

Rory looked at him strangely. "What? No, Jess. You're not."

"Now I know why you were angry," he told her. "I mean, leaving is a shit thing to do all on its own. But it was your first time and I...Rory, I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she said in a low voice.

He shook his head. "It's not."

"Jess, can we just forget it?" She asked. "It happened and that it was my first time doesn't change anything so let's just forget that it was."

"Rory..."

"Jess."

"Okay," he caved. "If that's what you want, then okay."

"Look," Rory sighed and crossed her arms self-consciously. "That night, I told you I didn't regret it and I don't. Even with the circumstances, I wouldn't take it back so whether or not I was a virgin when I went into your room seems like a small part of a great night."

Jess was silent. He stared at her face, searching for anything that could tell him what was going through her mind right that second. He didn't see a lie on her face so he nodded. "Okay."

"Thank you," she nodded back. "Pizza?"

"Yeah," he agreed, trying to push the conversation away from the front of his mind.

...

The pizza was all gone within an hour. Jess had surprised himself but not by much. Rory had eaten more slices than him and when she caught him looking at her, she ducked her head.

They sat on the floor for the past half hour, the other half spent carrying slices as Jess tried to find a tv to plug in. He managed to find one but they were only limited to regular tv. Rory flipped on some random documentary and they found that watching it together wasn't so bad.

After debates about Rand vs Hemingway, where Jess proclaimed that Rand was a political nut and Rory gushed about her monologues, they eased into casual conversation.

Jess remembered something he had witnessed earlier. "You know, before I left the wedding, I saw your mom dance with my uncle."

Rory looked more than surprised. "Luke dances?"

"Guess so," he shrugged. "I mean, personally, I don't know much about his personal life, he's always been more in mine because of my mom. But it was new."

"I bet," she smiled. "Were they happy?"

"They looked pretty happy," Jess stood up and moved the pizza box from the floor between them.

"Do you think they're gonna date now?" Rory wondered.

"You know better than I do," he sat back down. "I don't know your mom that well but we did talk before I left."

"Oh?" She said. "Good talk?"

He nodded. "It was awkward a little but I think because I wasn't sure what exactly I could say. She knew about our plans."

"She didn't really sound happy about it when I told her, though," she almost laughed. "Said how she told me I could do worse but didn't expect me to actually go for it."

"Huh," he leaned back so his hands were palm down on the floor. "So she thinks I'm not a bad idea to date?"

"I didn't say she said that," Rory grinned at him. "But you know, she just doesn't want me to get hurt. Which is understandable, I mean. Florida happened and to her, it sounds like I'm getting close to someone new. She doesn't know it's you which if she did, she might be more upset."

"Is that why you won't tell her?" He asked. "I know you said you didn't want it be awkward but what if hiding it makes it worse?"

Rory sighed. "At first, it was. Now...I don't know. My mom's opinion means a lot to me and I know it sounds stupid but I don't want her to judge."

"Will she?"

"Maybe."

Jess leaned back, closer than he was before. "And you don't want her to judge."

"No," she replied low.

"Because she might make you think it was a mistake?" He wondered.

"No," she shook her head. "Because I don't think I will, no matter what she says and that scares me."

"Why?" He continued.

"Because I like you," Rory answered. "I like you a lot and sometimes I think it's okay to push it aside and just be friends then other times, I wonder what it'll be like."

He had to ask. Jess needed to hear her say it. "Wonder what what'll be like?"

"Being with you."

Rory barely got the words out before Jess kissed her. His hands went to each side of her face and held her to him. Rory's arms wrapped around his neck as she pulled him closer.

Just as instant as it began, Jess pulled himself away. "I'm sorry."

He stood up and headed towards the door as Rory followed. "Why?"

"Because that," he pointed to the floor. "I shouldn't have done that."

"I didn't object," she told him.

"Still," Jess shook his head. "I should go."

"Jess, wait," she said as he went to grabbed his jacket. He turned and waited for her words but she said none. Instead, she kissed him again. "Stay."

He didn't say anything, either. He just nodded and kissed her back. Her arms went around him again, this time on his waist. His wrapped behind her back and pulled her closer to him as they both deepened the kiss.

Rory pulled at his shirt, grabbing at it. Her fingers clawed at the fabric and he moved his hands to hers. Once his hands were near hers, she took it as an okay. She moved her hand upward and to the top of his nice shirt he had worn to his mother's wedding.

She undid the buttons one by one, moving lower down without interruption. His lips never left her skin, having moved to her neck once she kept focus on his shirt. Rory's hands were almost to the bottom buttons when Jess' mouth reached her collarbone.

He moved aside the shoulder of her top to get better access to her skin. She closed her eyes but not before she began to push his shirt off of him. It fell to the floor without a sound and he soon began work on getting hers off.

They separated while Jess pulled it over her and he stared at her a good moment before he spoke again. "You're beautiful."

She blushed and shook her head. "No, I'm not."

"You are," he put his left on her cheek and rubbed his thumb over her skin.

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before they both leaned in again. This kiss was different, slower. Rory tasted his lips with her own, mixing herself with him. She placed both hands on his face and kissed him softly.

They backed up into the wall as the kiss continued. The kiss deepened again, their tongues mixed together in the heat of passion. Jess moved his hands lower and they hovered over her skirt she had worn. He found the zipper fast and it fell from her body.

Rory stepped herself out of he puddle her skirt had been and held onto Jess' hand as she led him to the one piece of furniture that was left. When they were in her room, she reached for his buttons on his jeans. It felt like once this happened, there was no turning back and they made sure with a look that neither wanted to stop.

And so neither did.

 **A/N: I hope you like my rewritten version :D**


	14. Morning After

**A/N: Just remember though changes, canon storylines do mix :)**

 **I own nothing but my own twists.**

Images flashed before Rory's eyes. She was sure she was dreaming them, sure that they hadn't really happened. Every detail of Florida was burned into her memory whether she wanted it there or not and these were not Florida memories.

His hands were soft and gentle, possibly even more gentle than they had been her first time. They were feather swept and warm, each touch left a line of flames behind. She never wanted him to stop touching her.

His mouth was even better. His lips connected to hers as if they belonged with them. When they weren't on her own mouth, they were in her skin. Her cheek, down to her neck, her collarbone. There was when he kissed down her chest, wet and hot on her breasts. That definitely didn't happen in Florida.

This time was different. The first time, there was just the act of making love. Rory would deny it if anyone else called it so, afraid of judgements that she fell for him too fast. He took his time in his exploration of her body the second time. There was a third time too but she dismissed it. This was only a dream, right?

She awoke slowly, alone. Rory sighed. She knew it had been a dream but she hoped severely it wasn't. The blanket slid off of her and she looked down, surprised to see she wasn't wearing anything. That was odd.

As she grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her, Rory stood up from the bed and walked out into the main room of her dorm. Her clothes were scattered across the floor aside from her bra and underwear that were in her room.

She picked up her skirt and it crashed on her. It wasn't a dream. In her memories, yes memories, she told herself, Jess had come over and this was the skirt she had worn. She remembered he took off of her in the very spot it was in on the floor.

Just as the realization hit and she began to wonder where Jess went, the door opened. She barely had the chance to worry that he left before he stood in front of her, a coffee tray in one hand and a brown bag in another.

"You're up," Jess stated as he shut the door behind him.

"You got coffee?" She smiled.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I was trying to be back before you woke up."

"It's okay," she told him. And it was okay. "I haven't been up that long."

He nodded and looked around the room.. "Surveying the damage?"

"It's not too bad," Rory nodded herself. "You found your clothes easy?"

"Some," he laughed. "Others I really had to serarch for, which would have been okay if I didn't have to search for them naked."

"Sorry I missed that," she blushed and looked down.

"Do you want your coffee?" He asked. "I got you a muffin. I wasn't sure that was okay."

"Muffin's good," Rory replied.

"Where do you wanna eat?" Jess looked around again but this time for space.

His eyes landed on Rory when they came back up. She wrapped the blanket and her arms tighter around herself. "We can sit on the bed."

"Okay," he half-whispered.

She led him back into her room where the sheets were still messy on the bed and her underwear still on the floor. She considered picking them up or putting them on but she wasn't sure where to get dressed that wasn't in front of him.

Jess sat on the bed but she did not. Rory stood by the bed, blankets are tight as she could hold them around her body. He watched her for a moment before his curiosity got the better of him. "Are you okay?"

She made a face that he couldn't quite read. She looked down once, twice then back up again. "I'm naked."

"I figured," he smirked at her and she resisted the blush that would follow.

"I'm not sure where to go to get dressed," Rory told him.

"Don't get dressed," he said and pulled the muffin out of the bag.

"What?" Rory looked at him strangely. "You're dressed."

"I'm dressed because I don't think they would have served me if I walked in naked," Jess teased.

"I could see how that was necessary, then," she smiled softly.

"Believe me, if I hadn't left to get us breakfast, I'd be saying good morning a different way," he admitted.

Now the blush really did turn her face scarlet. "Really?"

"You need more proof?" He asked.

"Maybe," she bit her lip to stop the smile from spreading too far.

"Sit," he told her and this time, she did. He gave her one of the coffees which she took happily.

"I don't know if I can hold the blanket up,' she laughed nervously.

When she looked back at Jess again, there was another smirk on his face. "I don't mind."

Rory took a long sip of her hot coffee and gulped it down. "You seem to think higher of me than I am."

"What do you mean?" He wondered.

"I know I'm not the prettiest," she sighed. "I mean, I'm surprised you even are interested in me. You could get anyone you want, looking like that."

He was shaking his head before she even finished. "And you seem to think less of you than you actually are."

"And what does that mean?" She countered.

"It means have you ever looked in a mirror?" He asked and she nodded once. "I mean, really looked. Not just check o see if your hair is okay or whatever else you need to check. Just looked at you."

"Not really," she said and bit into her muffin.

Jess drank some of his coffee and took a bite of his own muffin before he continued. "Come on. I wanna show you something."

"What?" She questioned.

"Come on," he repeated and held out his hand for her once he stood up.

Rory took his hand and he walked them out of the bedroom and into the hall of the dorm. "Jess! I'm not really dressed appropriately for leaving the dorm."

"No one's here," he said and brought her into one of the bathrooms he found. "Just look in the mirror for me."

He pushed the door open and stood Rory in front of the mirror. She sighed, looked at herself as instructed. She saw nothing too mentionable - young girl, brown hair, freckles, covered only by a blanket which was too snug around her. "I still don't see what you mean."

Jess shook his head and put his palms on her bare shoulders. "You're beautiful."

"No, I'm not," she shook her own head in reply.

"You are," he told her. "Trust me, you are anything but not."

Rory stared at her own reflection now and tried to see herself as he seemed to see her. She still couldn't picture herself as beautiful. As she looked at Jess' reflection now, she saw something different. He was beautiful too, she thought, but that wasn't what struck her.

It was his expression. He looked so in awe of her, so in his belief that she was this beautiful creature he told her she was. Rory turned around slowly and looked at him from underneath her eyelashes. "Jess."

"Yeah?" He said, probably hopeful she agrees with him.

"Let's go back to the room," she just said.

Jess nodded silently and they walked back to the dorm room. He shut the door behind him and let out a slow breath. "I'm sorry for taking you out there like that -"

He was cut off by lips on his. The blanket was tied as best as it could at the top now so she wrapped her arms around his neck. Jess placed his palms flat on her back and pushed her closer to him. Neither stopped the kiss. Instead they just deepened it and when he lifted Rory up, wrapping her legs around his waist, she didn't object.

He carried her back to the bed without questions. Rory was laid down underneath him, lips still attached. Her right hand rested on his cheek while her left held onto his right bicep.

Jess' hands had a plan of their own. They roamed to where she tied the blanket and for a moment, he broke the kiss. It wasn't hard to untie it and as soon as it was done, his lips crashed back to hers. Hanfs started to pull the blanket apart, opening it little by little.

Rory made no objection as herself as exposed into the daylight of the room. She imagined she would feel more nervous but for some reason she couldn't out her finger on, she wasn't.

Just as they had last night, Jess' lips trailed down her body. Sounds erupted from her mouth, she felt no need to be quiet on an empty campus. Also just like last night, he made sure to take time on each inch of her body.

She laid there, underneath Jess, without an inch of clothing on her. He was still fully dressed from his breakfast trip. The breakfast he had run out for was forgotten, muffins half eaten and coffee getting colder by the minute.

Rory made another sound but this time it wasn't one of pleasure. It was more of impatience. Jess stopped and looked at her to see what was wrong and if maybe she regretted this. She shook her head once and smiled shyly despite being bared before him.

He didnt catch on to what she wanted so Rory reached up and began to unbutton his shirt from last night. Finally, Jess caught on and he helped her slide it off of him then next they worked to get his pants off.

Once he was as equally unclothed as she was, she pulled his face to hers. Lips and tongues mingled together before Rory went for bravery as she wrapped one leg around him. He took the hint from her and it wasn't long before they reached their high together.

Jess collapsed beside her. They both panted and he turned to her with a huge smile which she returned. It felt nice - to be in their own world. He kissed her sweaty forehead and covered her back up with the blanket. Rory closed her eyes and felt more content that she thought she would be a month ago even.

...

It was two hours later when Rory finally awoke again. She wasn't usually the kind to sleep in, not anymore especially. She unwrapped Jess' arms that were around her and slid out of the bed. There was a feeling of déjà vu as she looked at him so peacefully asleep. She remembered Florida and it felt like a lifetime ago. This felt so much more real.

Suddenly aware of her immodesty, Rory sxanned the room quickly. She slid on her panties and bra then grabbed a shirt to cover it. She knew she should shower especially considering what happened both last night and both this morning. She searched one of her boxes for fresh clothes to wear and headed for the bathroom.

The whole shower she kept thinking of Jess, back in her room, naked. She thought of what happened and what it would be like to be his girlfriend. She thought of staying in Stars Hollow with him this summer, her first summer in town since before her junior year.

The thoughts crashed on her as she thought of her mother. Lorelai didn't even know about all of this with Jess. She felt a pang of guilt about the truths she'd hidden but was determined to tell her now. She'd be disappointed for sure that Rory hadn't told her but ultimately hapoy for her. Right?

Rory washed her hair and rinsed it out when the fear struck. She was only nineteen years old. A freshmen at college. Not just any college, but Ivy League, Yale. It was too soon to feel this deeply about someone. She still barely even knew him if she was honest with herself.

But yet her feelings stayed the same. Rory was in love with him.

She turned off the water and wrapped herself in a towel. She dressed quickly then stared at herself in the mirror Jess had brought her to earlier. The image was the same aside from the wet hair and she was now dressed. She still didn't see what he saw.

Slowly, she grabbed her stuff and went back to her dorm. Jess wasn't asleep anymore. He stood in the main room, his jeans on but still without a shirt on though it was in his head. He looked at her when she entered the room.

"Luke called me," he said as he pulled the shirt on over his head. "Wanted to know where I was."

"Oh," she said. It was easy to forget about the outside world here with him and that thought scared her even further. "What did you say?"

"Told him our dinner went late and I stayed at a hotel in New Haven instead of driving back," he answered.

"Quick thinking," she half-smiled. The air that had been between them the whole morning was almost all gone.

"Rory, why am I lying?" He asked. "We just spent the night together. A really great night, too. Why am I hiding this?"

"I haven't told my mom," she muttered the excuse even she thought sounded weak.

Jess sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Are you going to tell your mom?"

"Yes," she said. "I am."

"When?" He wondered.

Rory shuffled her feet. "I don't know."

"I don't want to be this secret," he said.

"I don't want that, either," she replied. "I just...I'm worried about what she'll say."

Jess nodded in understanding even though he didn't understand. He never had to worry about how his mother feel about his life. "How important is her reaction to you?"

"Very," she answered without a beat.

"So if she said she didn't like it, you'd end this?" He asked.

"No," she said and she meant it. "Her opinion is important to me but I wouldn't let it decide how to live my life."

"Okay," he whispered but his next words were louder. "Then I have a propositionfor you."

"A proposition?" He nodded. "What?"

"Come to New York with me," he suggested.

Rory almost laughed. "What?"

"Come with me," Jess said again. "Come stay in New York with me this summer. We'll live together. We'll be together. It'll be just us aside from my roommates but we'll get to that later."

"I can't go with you," she said. "What about my family? My friends, my life?"

"What about me?" He asked.

"You should stay in Stars Hollow," she countered.

Jess shook his head, her question was already answered. "No."

"Why not?" Rory asked. "We could do the same thing there."

"Except not," he said. "You'd be wondering what your mother thinks and I'd be out of a job."

"Luke can give you a job," she told him. "You're family. He'd help you out."

"I have a job, Rory," he said. "I'm only asking come stay with me for the summer and you're telling me to move."

"Then don't live there, just come visit a lot," she tried.

"I don't know," he replied in a low voice.

"Me, either," she added. "Can I...can I think about it?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "That's the main thing I ask for."

Rory nodded, too, feeling awkward in a way she hadn't expected to after what they shared. "Do you want to help me my stuff back home?"

"Won't there be questions?" He asked.

"If there are, I'll answer them," she told him.

"Okay," Jess agreed.

He took a few boxes out to his car while she turned on her phone. There was two missed calls from her mother. She texted her that Jess was still in New Haven and was going to help her transport her stuff. There was a quick reply asking for details later and a see you soon.

...

When they arrived in Stars Hollow around 2 pm, Rory led Jess to her house in her car. He got out first and she opened her trunk for him to carry the first boxes. Lorelai heard the cars and ran out excitedly.

"Fruit of my loans!" She exclaimed and hugged her daughter tightly. "How I missed you!"

Rory laughed into her mother's arms as she watched Jess walk into the house. "No more missing. I'm home now."

"Yes, you are," her mother agreed. "And speaking of...I'm guessing date gone good?"

Rory paled before she realized her mother was only teasing. "He was still by and I didn't want to make you and Luke drive up."

"Uh-huh," Lorelai said suspiciously. "What about the mattress?"

"It's..." She fought back the flush as she thought of what exactly happened on the item her mother asked about. "It's not here."

"You left it?" She asked. "Oh, honey. But I was gonna make Luke switch it."

"Its okay, Mom," Rory said. "I didn't say where I left it."

Lorelai have her a look. "Where did you leave it?"

"Grandma understood that I brought my own mattress," she told her. "It's in the pool house right now."

"Aha!" Lorelai laughed. "I knew you wouldn't leave it at Yale."

"Leave what at Yale?" Jess asked as he came back outside. "Hi, Lorelai."

"Nice to see you again, Jess," she replied and he nodded.

"My mattress," Rory answered his question.

"Oh, the one we brought to that mansion," he said.

Lorelai laughed again. "Good girl."

"I learned from the best," Rory told her.

"You taking good care of my girl, Jess?" She asked.

Jess looked at Rory for an answer but came up with nothing. "Yeah. I fed her, I didn't bore her and I helped bring her back."

Lorelai smiled brightly at him. "That sounds like good care to me."

"I'm just gonna grab a few more boxes," he said and walked past them to her car.

While he walked back to the house, Rory went to grab her own box and told her mother she wants to at least bring one in.

She followed behind him but said nothing until he turned around. "Jess -"

"I know," he said sadly. "I get it."

"I want to explain," she said.

"No explanation necessary," he told her. "You want to stay with your mom. It's okay."

"I do want to be with you," Rory said. "The offer still stands to come here."

"Thanks," he said with a small smile. "I think after I'm done here, I'm gonna go say bye to Luke, see if my mom is still around then I'm gonna go home."

"You'll say goodbye to me before you go, right?" Rory wondered.

"Yeah," he gave her a smile.

"Okay," she said.

Jess touched her cheek softly and she leaned into it before he walked out of the room and went back outside. She watched as he talked briefly to her mother and took the last of what was in her car. Lorelai closed the trunk as Rory finally made her way outside.

 **A/N: I know, I'm sorry! But there's a reason for the plot to follow this path, trust me.**


	15. Post Goodbyes

**A/N: Thank you so much for all the feedback! It means a lot! :)**

 **Also skipping a lot of 4x22 by the way. We all know how the inn opened and I'm not changing any of that aside from Rory comparing her exes and Dean telling Rory she deserves better than Jess. Not only because I don't like that scene but because my Dean does not know Jess so that scene would make no sense in my version lol :D**

 _When Jess arrived back at the diner, he headed straight for the apartment. Luke glanced at him quickly but said nothing. Instead, he finished up with a customer before he followed Jess up._

 _His nephew was in the middle of grabbing his stuff while throwing it into a duffel bag when Luke entered. "You're leaving?"_

 _"I gotta get back to New York," he turned around. "Work."_

 _"What happened with Rory?" Luke asked not to pry but in a fatherly tone._

 _Jess shrugged. "Nothing happened."_

 _"I thought you two were...getting along," he stumbled on his words._

 _"We were," he agreed. "And now it's time I go back to New York and back to my job."_

 _"So you're not gonna tell me what's going on?" He wondered._

 _"Nothing's going on," Jess shrugged again. "I asked her to come to New York with me, she said no and I have to go back."_

 _Luke nodded, unsure what to say. "I'm sure that Rory -"_

 _"You don't have to say anything," he zipper up his bag and turned around. "She didn't want to come but I have to go. It's pretty easy to come to a conclusion."_

 _"Jess," he tried._

 _He'd seen him like this before. Any other time it had occurred, it had been because of his mother, though. This was because of a girl and Luke wasn't sure how to help Jess with that when his own heart had some cracks._

 _"It's fine," his nephew managed a small smile._

 _Once again, Luke nodded. "You gonna say goodbye to your mom before you go?"_

 _"Yeah," Jess grabbed his bag. "I was thinking I'd head there now. Get on the road."_

 _"Sure you don't wanna stay?" The older man asked. He hated that his nephew lived in such a rundown place. "Could help a few days then if you decide you want to leave still, you can."_

 _Jess gave another smile. "Thanks, Uncle Luke."_

 _He patted his uncle on the shoulder before he enveloped him into a hug. It was brief but enough. Luke smiled back at him before he headed out the door._

 _"See you later," Jess said as he opened the door then shut it behind him._

Jess paced back and forth in his apartment. Both Caleb and Todd were at out for the night while he himself sat home and sulked.

It had been days since he left Stars Hollow. Since then, he had gone back to work and after some explanations, everything seemed fine. Luke had called him this morning about the inn Rory's mother, Lorelai, opening this weekend. There was something of a hopefulness to his voice. He could tell his uncle wanted him to come.

He let him down easy and told him he had a really busy weekend planned. Truth be told, that was a lie. Jess actually had no plans at all. Instead of going out with his roommates as they insisted, he stared at the four walls of his apartment in a daze.

He told himself that Rory choosing to stay in Stars Hollow didn't mean she didn't choose him. She just didn't want to come to New York. Whatever she had meant in her decision, she hadn't contacted him since he left nor had he her. That was the part that bugged him.

The idea of calling her seemed desperate. He wanted to know where they stood, especially after not only dinner but sleeping together again. That sure wasn't what he planned on for that night but it happened and there was sure no turning back now.

Jess picked up his phone and hesitantly and dialed. It rang a few times before the voice of Rory Gilmore came into his ear. Her voice informed him that she couldn't reach his call right now and she was sorry but hoped whoever it was would leave a message.

Quickly, he hung up. He didn't want to leave some pathetic voicemail asking about where they stood on her phone. Jess grabbed his leather jacket and called Caleb.

"Hey, where did you say you guys were going tonight?"

...

Rory looked through her CD's thoughtfully. She wasn't entirely sure kind of music the townspeople of Stars Hollow would want to listen to. She grabbed a few neutral albums and pushed aside The Clash and ones alike it with a sigh.

There was a knock on the back door and slowly, she rose to her feet. When she reached the door, she sighed in relief to see it was Dean. "What are you doing here? Don't you have a wedding to plan?"

"Uh, not exactly," he admitted and she moved aside the door to let him in.

Rory scrunched her nose. "What does thst mean? What happened?"

"I'm not sure I can marry Lindsay," he said.

"What happened?" She found herself repeating.

"I've been watching her and her mother plan the wedding," Dean explained. "And then it just hit me. I don't love her. Not the way I should, not the way I'm supposed to."

"Oh, Dean," she said sadly.

"But then I realized something else," he continued. "There is someone I love. Someone I have always loved. And she's standing right in front of me now so had to tell her."

Rory exhaled loudly. "Um...I'm not sure what you want me to say."

"Say you'll be with me," he told her.

"I can't be with you," she shook her head.

"Why not?" He questioned. "Rory, I love you."

She bit her lip so hard she feared she would taste blood. "I love...someone else."

Dean was stunned to say the least. "What? Who?"

"You don't know him," she shook her head once.

"Tell me who he is," Dean instructed. "If he's enough for you to be with him over me, then I deserve to know."

"No, you don't," Rory found herself saying. "You broke up with me. And because I was going to college and you didn't want to be left behind. Then you started dating Lindsay and had no respect for my feelings so no, you don't deserve to know."

"Rory -"

"No, Dean, don't Rory me."

"I thought you would move on and date other guys but you haven't," he told her. "You're probably just saying there's someone else because you're not ready to admit your feelings for me."

He leaned closer to her and she stepped backwards. "What are you doing?"

"Come on, Rory," he smirked at her.

"Dean, stop," she pushed at him and he finally stopped moving towards her. Rory backed herself into her room and by her desk. "And if you really have to know, his name is Jess."

"Jess?" He looked confused then she saw the pieces connect. "Wait, Jess is - you're in love with Luke's nephew?"

"What?" Another voice said in surprise. Rory felt her heart beat fast as her mother emerged in the doorway of her bedroom.

Dean looked between them, seeing that this was obviously news for the maternal Gilmore. "Oh."

Rory ducked her head down in embarrassment. She didn't want her mother find out this way. She turned to Dean guiltily. "Dean, can you...please go, Dean."

He took one more look between them and nodded once before he backed out of the room. Rory was grateful he was gone but one look at her told her she had some explaining to do.

"So," Lorelai waited. "Anything you'd like to share?"

"No," she tried with a stupid fake smile she knew couldn't fool Lorelai Victoria Gilmore.

"Uh-huh," she nodded. "So what you told Dean isn't true? You're not in love with Jess?"

Rory shuffled her feet. "It wasn't a lie."

"Excuse me?" Her mother said, not sure she heard her correctly in her low whisper.

"It wasn't a lie," Rory admitted louder.

Lorelai thought of that phone call Rory took outside of Luke's. Her face had definitely shown more than friendly feelings and she recalled thinking how it reminded her of herself with Rory's father when she was young.

She realized she shouldn't be that surprised at all about this.

"So, the other night..." Lorelai worded slowly. "When he came to your dorm..."

Rory waited for her mother to finish. She didn't want to be the first to say the words.

"Was it a date?" She finally asked.

"No," Rory shook her head. "It wasn't a date. Not at first or when we planned it, at least."

Lorelai nodded. "What does that mean exactly?"

"It means...Jess didn't stay in a hotel that night," she whispered, hoping her low voice didn't carry.

"Uh-huh," she said then sighed. "Rory, what were you thinking?"

"What?" She said.

"A month ago, you liked a guy so much that you slept with him after only a few days after meeting him," she said. "And now Jess?"

"It's not like that," Rory defended.

"Of all the people though," she continued. "Luke's nephew, Rory."

"I didn't just pick him," she crossed her arms.

"So it just happened?" She asked.

"Sort of," Rory fidgeted.

Lorelai eyed her suspiciously. "Sort of?"

"Jess is...the only guy I've slept with," she wrapped her arms around herself.

"But how?" Lorelai wondered. "I mean, there's Jess and there's the guy in Florida...wait."

She searched her daughter's face for an explanation. Rory wouldn't meet her eyes and instead stared down at the floor as she connected the dots. She was silent at first before finally, she voiced where her thoughts trailed to.

"The guy in Florida, it was Jess?" Lorelai asked and was answered with a nod. "Oh.'

"I know," Rory agreed. "I didn't expect it, either. I was more than shocked to see him in Luke's diner when I came back."

"Why didn't you tell me?" She wondered.

"I thought it would be weird," she admitted. "I mean, you know Jess, kind of. He's Luke's nephew."

"But you were still sleeping with him," she said. "Spring break, your dorm. When else?"

"Those were the only times," Rory answered and tried to lighten the conversation. "And don't worry, we were safe. All those Trojan jokes you told stuck."

"Honey, I'm glad you were safe, believe me," she said. "I just...I wish you told me. And I'm still kinda stuck on it being Jess."

"I know," she said again. "And I'm sorry about not telling you."

"Just answer this," Lorelai said. "How did he explain leaving you? He came here for Luke right after you told me what happened."

"He told me about Luke when I saw him here," she looked down and back up. "He didn't abandon me as some kind of one-night stand."

"Just because he has a legitimate excuse to leave doesn't mean he didn't plan on it," Lorelai told her.

"So he used Luke getting arrested as a way to ditch?" Rory scoffed. "You don't know him like I do."

"He got you to have sex with him again," she pointed out. "And where is he now? Back in New York, right."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Rory shook her head. She didn't understand why her mom was being like this.

"I understand he left, twice," she said. "The day after he got you into bed."

Rory still shook her head. "You're wrong about him."

"Am I?" Lorelai mused, worried her daughter might have fallen into a trick that anyone, even someone they trust's family member could do.

"Did you know he asked me to come to New York with him?" She asked and the shock on her mother's face said no. "He wanted me to stay with him for the summer and I said no. Wanna know why?"

"Why?" Lorelai asked.

"Because I didn't want to leave you," Rory grabbed her jacket and walked past her and out of the house.

"Rory, wait!" Lorelai called.

Rory didn't care. She headed down the steps and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. Instinctively, she called Jess.

It rang a few times at first but then the line picked up. "Hello?"

There was music in the background. It sounded like he was out, maybe at a party or a club. His voice sounded slightly off. Almost as if he had been drinking.

"Hello?" He asked again.

Of course he didn't know it was her. He probably didn't check the caller id when he picked up because he was out. For all Rory knew, Jess was in the middle of flirting with another girl right now.

She felt sick. Quickly, she hung up the phone after Jess asked another hello. Rory buried her face in her hands as she began to cry, worried her mother was actually right.

The door opened behind her and out stepped Lorelai. Rory felt her mother's eyes on her and sniffed. After she wiped her eyes, she stood up and brushed past Lorelai.

...

The next morning, Jess' head buzzed. He opened his eyes reluctantly only to close them again. He let out a groan as he remembered the night before and how he had more than enough beers. The hangover hurt his temples and he tried again to open his eyes.

With another groan and now awake, Jess rolled off his mattress. Caleb was asleep and Todd didn't come home with them last night. Jess figured he went home with someone else.

He put some coffee in the pot and grabbed clothes to take a shower. Jess spent most of the shower splashing water on his face to fully wake him up. He didn't have any work today at least which he was grateful for.

When he was out of there, he dressed quickly and walked back out into the main room. Caleb was now awake and stood by the coffee pot with his cup.

"Morning," he said to his roommate.

Jess nodded. "Yeah. Undecided so far."

Caleb smiled. "Still hungover?"

"A little," Jess replied as he walked to his friend to grab his own cup of coffee. "I lost track of how much I drank."

"I think it was more than me," his friend said. "Which is funny because if I remember correctly, you didn't even want to come."

"Because you and Todd hanging out and drinking?" Jess raised an eyebrow. "Who knows what can happen."

"And yet you came," he pointed out. "What changed your mind?"

"You know, you should become a therapist if you're so interested in other people's lives," he told him.

"That's not a bad idea," Caleb considered. "But something's going on. Something has been going on."

Jess sighed and put his drink down. "Will you let it go?"

"I'll let it go when you tell me because whatever it is is making you moody," he said.

"Gee, thanks," he replied.

"Come on, man," Caleb said. "How long have you known me?"

"I'm guessing too long," Jess told him with a smirk.

"I know a lot of shit you've been through," he tried again.

"Fine," he sighed. "You remember Rory?"

"Rory," he said. "The girl from spring break that I tried to talk to for you?"

Jess nodded. "We've met up again."

"How?" Caleb asked. "When?"

"Doesn't matter," he shook his head. "Or you know, maybe it does. Who knows?"

"I don't get it," his friend looked confused.

"Her mother is friends with my uncle," Jess let out a laugh. "Or maybe her mother is dating my uncle now. Who knows about that either?"

Caleb made a face. "I don't follow. So you've met her mother and she knows your uncle that lives in Connecticut?"

"That's right," he picked up his cup again. "And the other night, me and Rory hung out as friends. Only it didn't end as friends and I asked her to stay here for the summer."

"Didn't end as friends as in you fought or as in...?"

"The latter."

"Whoa," Caleb seemed surprised. "And you asked her to stay here? Here with you, me and Todd? For a summer?"

"Before you worked up, she said no," Jess replied.

"You seriously wanted her to stay on this apartment for three months?" He questioned. "I'd have say no, too."

"Shut up," he said then sighed deeply. "Look, I don't really want to talk about it okay?"

"Okay," he put his hands up in surrender. "I have one question though."

Jess glared at him. "What?"

"Did you give her the letter?" Caleb asked in all seriousness.

"No," Jess replied. "Guess I never got the chance."

...

When Rory opened her door at the inn the next morning, she was surprised to see her mother not there. She'd half expected her to wait for her just to continue their heated discussion.

Last night, after she went back inside the house, Rory had grabbed the cd's her mother requested and they left together, neither saying a word. Lorelai said nothing about Jess the rest of the night but it was obvious she was thinking something about him.

Slowly, she made her way out of her room and while still in her pajamas, she headed for the front desk. Michel stood there and scribbled something in the book before him. She looked around to see if she could find her mom.

With a sigh, she headed back upstairs and got dressed. Finally, she found her mom in the dining area talking to Miss Patty and Babette. Rory walked towards them with a small smile and said hello's before she asked Lorelai if she could see her real quick.

Lorelai led her daughter outside where they turned to face each other awkwardly. "I'm sorry about last night."

"I should have told you about Jess," Rory said. "I got worried about how you'd react and that became my whole reasoning and it shouldn't have."

"Did you want to tell me about it?" She wondered.

The younger Gilmore sighed. "I wanted to. I made pro/con lists. Nothing seemed helpful."

Lorelai smiled softly. "You made a pro/can list for me?"

"Of course," she smiled back. "As if you should expect any less."

"I wish you felt you could have come to me," Lorelai apologized.

"I wish, too," Rory admitted. "This thing with Jess - it took me by surprise. I'm Florida, seeing him here, the feelings and especially the other night."

"I want you to feel like you can tell me anything," she said. "Even if you feel like i won't approve and especially if it's something or someone you feel strongly about."

"I know," Rory nodded. "And I want to."

"So...you're in love with him?" Lorelai asked and was answered with a nod. "How did you...how did you know? When?"

"I had an idea in Florida," she confessed. "But it wasn't until we were talking regularly that I knew and I definitely knew the night of his mom's wedding."

"Does he know you're in love with him?" She wondered.

She shook her head. "I never said the exact words."

"Hon..." Lorelai pushed a stray piece of hair behind her daughter's ear. "Far be it from me to encourage my daughter into a sex life but maybe you should."

"What?" Rory was stunned.

"Maybe you should go to New York," she said. "Tell him you only didn't go because of me."

She looked around then back at her mother. She still looked serious. "What?"

"I can handle things here if you want to go," Lorelai suggested.

Rory bit her lip in consideration. "Really?"

"Really," she nodded and hugged her daughter.

"Thanks, mom," she told her.

"No problem," she smiled. "Hey and since we're being honest, have some news for you."

Then Lorelai rushed into the story of how and Luke had kissed the night before. And how she'd seen Kirk naked.

...

It was afternoon when there was an incessant knocking at the door. Caleb walked to it curiously. He opened it slowly to reveal Rory. He leaned on the doorframe. "Well, well, well."

"Caleb, right?" Rory tried to recall the name she'd heard during spring break.

"Right," he nodded. "Let me guess, you came because that one kiss we shared was not enough?"

"No," Rory laughed once. "I'm actually here to see Jess. Is he here?"

"He's not," Caleb told her. "Which, acthally might be a good thing."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I heard he asked you to stay for the summer and you said no," he said.

"Yeah, but that's not the whole story," she said.

"I'm sure it's not," he agreed. "But I've known Jess a long time and it has to take something pretty big to get him upset."

"He's upset?" She asked.

"He'd never admit it but he is," Caleb crossed his arms as he leaned off he frame.

"That's why I need to talk to him," Rory said.

"I'm gonna give you something that he wouldn't want me give you without him here," he told her and walked into the apartment, shuffled through a bag that looked like Jess' then came back.

He handed the folded paper to her and she took it. "What's this?"

"The letter from Florida," he explained.

"Oh," Rory opened the letter and read it. "Oh."

"Look, Rory, you seem like a nice girl," Caleb said. "But I have to look out for my friend. You understand that, right?"

"Yeah, of course," she nodded. "Just - I guess can we keep this between us?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Thanks for the note," Rory held it up and turned around to walk away. She didn't look back once and when her grandmother asked her the next day if she wanted to go to Europe, she didn't decline.

...

 _Jess tapped lightly on Rory's bedroom window just as he had the last time he visited Stars Hollow. She was surprised to see he acthally came back but glad. She went to open the window a little bit. "Come to the door. My mom's not here."_

 _"Okay," he agreed and walked to the door instead but Rory beat him there._

 _"You actually came back," she said. "I didn't think you would, to be honest."_

 _"I wasn't sure if I would myself," he told her._

 _"I'm glad you did," she gave him a small smile._

 _Jess stuffed his hands in his pockets. "You sure I can't change your mind?"_

 _Her smile faltered and she shook her head. "I'm sorry."_

 _"It's okay," he said. "I guess I shouldn't have expected you to just come with me."_

 _"It's not that," she said._

 _Now he shook his head. "I was heading out now and you are actually my last stop."_

 _"Oh," she wrapped her arms around herself. "So you're leaving now?"_

 _"Yeah, I got my stuff in my car and I said my goodbyes," he told her. "Which was weird, by the way, because that guy named Taylor was very glad to be rid of me and that dance teacher seemed sad."_

 _"Oh, Miss Patty would be," she laughed._

 _He smiled back at her. "So I guess this is a see you around."_

 _"See you around," she said to him the best she could._

 _Jess nodded at her and headed back out the front door when she called to him. "Yeah?"_

 _"I still don't regret it," she confessed. "Any of it."_

 _He turned around and kissed her. It wasn't a light kiss but she kissed him back. When he pulled apart, his hands were on both sides of her face and her eyes were closed. When she opened them, he smiled._

 _Jess backed himself up and as he was leaving, he told her, "Me, either."_

 _She smiled as she watched him go and hoped he would come back._

 **A/N: I have to send her to Europe right? I know I don't but of course, there's reasons for it, trust me :)**


	16. Happy Birthday

**A/N: I know, following the Europe storyline seems like a cop out. But it's paralling their history, Europe to Washington. And believe me, I know the ending already so hopefully you will it as worth it as I think it is.**

 **And any questions you may have - this is going to anyone, feel free to ask! If it's not a spoiler, I'll do my best to answer :)**

 **I'm trying to keep with my weekly updates so when I slip, just know I'm working on it!**

Rory woke up with an overactive imagination. Much like the day after Luke and Lorelai's first date, she had these vivid dreams - or were they memories? She wasn't even sure anymore.

She remembered hands on her body, a mouth, cotton sheets, soft hair gripped between her fingers. There was sounds that came out of herself that in turn received his own sounds in response. Her eyes shot open at the moment of release in her dreams - memories? - and Rory frantically looked around the room.

It was still dark outside and the empty room was much too big for her. Rory sat up and shook her head, rubbed at it until the flashes went away. They didn't and she sighed in failure. She wasnt sure how much more dreams that like she could take.

As she climbed off the bed and slipped on the hotel slippers, she realized why the memories were so vivid today. It was June 16th, she remembered. It had been over a month since that night in her dorm room.

It was also Jess Mariano's birthday.

They hadn't talked since that morning after when he left Stars Hollow. She wasn't sure why she hadn't called him but she knew it wasn't only her fault. He could have called too and the fact that he hadn't either heavily weighed on her.

She grabbed her phone and turned it on. The glow of the screen was bright in the dark room and told it was 3:27 am. Her grandmother would still be asleep in the room beside hers.

Without much thinking, Rory dialed Jess' number. It felt stupid and impulsive but for the moment, she didn't care. It didn't hit her just how stupid it was until she heard him pick up.

His voice was filled with sleep and it sent her heart into a lurch the second it hit her ears. "Hello?"

Rory breathed in and breathed out. She couldn't speak. She wasn't sure why. A few seconds later, he called her name and she froze.

"It's me," she whispered. "I'm so sorry I woke you."

"Don't worry about it," he said as his voice worked to get back to normal. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she answered.

She imagined Jess giving her a look that says 'tell me the truth'. "If nothing's wrong, then why are you calling at...3:30 in the morning?"

Rory sighed. "I couldn't sleep."

"And you called me?" He was definitely awake now but still spoke in a whisper.

"I may have been... dreaming about you," she said as slow as possible.

Jess was surprised to hear that. "Oh."

"I should have just let that part out," she tried to laugh.

"Rory, why are you calling?" He asked. He didn't sound mad or angry, just curious.

"Happy birthday," she blurted out too fast.

"What?' he half-laughed at her quick reply.

"Happy birthday," Rory said much calmer now. "It is your birthday right? I didn't remember wrong or you didn't lie right?"

"No," he said.

"No?" She gasped.

Jess let out another small laugh. "No, you didn't remember wrong and no, I didn't lie."

She felt relieved now. "So it is your birthday."

"Yes, it is," he agreed and she could picture him nodding.

"Happy birthday," she whispered again.

"Weren't we suppose to have plans today?" He ended up asking.

Rory almost smiled to herself that he remembered before she remembered where she was. "I can't."

"That's okay," Jess said but his voice seemed different from seconds before. "You got plans."

"More like I'm in Europe," she chuckled shakily.

"What?" He sounded surprised.

"I'm in Europe," she clarified. "For the summer. With my grandmother."

"Huh," Jess said.

"Jess, it's not like that," she said.

"I didn't say anything," he told her.

"I know what you're thinking," she added.

"What am I thinking?" He wondered to her. "That you wouldn't come to New York with me but you'll fly to another continent with your grandmother? Didn't cross my mind at all."

"Jess, you don't understand," she shook her head and finally sat down. She wanted to tell him that she went to his apartment and that she had the letter. But Caleb's words rang in her head.

 _"I've known Jess a long time and it has to take something pretty big to get him upset."_

 _"I have to look out for my friend. You understand that, right?"_

"I understand," he said. "The sad thing is I really do. Have a great time in Europe, Rory."

"Jess, wait -"

"It's fine," he said. "I guess I'll see you around, when you get back maybe."

Rory just nodded and felt her eyes sting. "Yeah. Okay."

"Thanks for the happy birthday," he said and hung up.

Rory wiped at her eyes to stop the fresh tears from falling. She hated that she hurt him again. As much as she wanted to tell him about her visit to New York, she wasn't sure if it was the right thing.

Caleb and Jess were obviously good friends. What if she brought about some rift between them? She didn't want to do that and she didn't want Jess blame Caleb for anything either. He just wanted his friend to be okay and could she really fault him for that?

Sighing heavily and with another swipe of tears, she turned her phone off and climbed back into the bed. She was sure that Emily Gilmore had plans for today and she wanted to be ready.

...

"Thanks for calling," Jess said into his phone.

"Of course I called," Luke said. "Things have been crazy here at the diner but I could come up if you want."

"Nah, stay there," he waved it off. "You and Lorelai are starting this thing still. You should stay with her."

"You sure?" Luke asked. "Because she's been so busy with the inn since it opened. She won't even miss me."

"I'm sure that's not true, Uncle Luke," Jess grinned.

"Wipe that smirk off your face," Luke warned as if he could see his nephew. "You sure you don't want me come down?"

"I'm good, don't worry so much about me," Jess told him.

Luke turned serious despite their light-hearted tones. "You know I'm always here, right? Anything you need, name it."

"I know," he nodded. "Thanks."

They said their goodbyes and hung up. Even after the call ended, Jess got the feeling that Luke knew something he wasn't saying. He also had the feeling it had to do with Rory and Europe.

The door to the apartment opened and Jess looked up from his seat. Both Todd and Caleb walked in together which in itself was rare. He suspected something was up.

"Whats going on?" Jess sat up straighter and waited for the next words.

Todd looked first at Caleb then back at Jess. "We're going out."

"Together?" Jess asked. "That's great, you know I always suspected something there but -"

"Not like that!" Todd said.

"Dude, sound a little nicer," Caleb said. "You'd be lucky to have a boyfriend like me."

Jess smirked at his friends while Todd shook his head. "We're taking you out for your birthday."

"What?" He laughed. "I'm good but thanks."

"Oh, come on," Todd said. "You can't mope around the apartment on your birthday!"

"Todd's right," Caleb chimed in. "It's unhealthy."

"The only thing that's unhealthy in my life right now is you two hanging out," he pointed at them. "That never happens even with you being roommates."

"Come on!" Todd said as Jess stood up and passed them by. "Go out, celebrate, get drunk, hook up."

"I don't really want to hook up tonight but thanks for the offer," Jess slapped Todd on the back and reached for his jacket.

"What, are you going out now?" Caleb asked.

"Maybe," he shrugged.

"You're off today," Todd pointed out.

"I'm not going to work," he shook his head.

Todd crossed his arms. "Then where are you going?"

"For a walk," Jess gave another shrug.

He headed out the door and made sure his keys were in his pocket. Once he found them, he closed the door behind him only to have it reopened and see Caleb behind him.

"What's going on?" Caleb asked.

"Nothing," he said. "It's my birthday. I don't have any messagering to do today. I want to go for a walk."

He eyed him suspiciously. "Rory called, didn't she?"

"What?" Jess spat. "What does she have to do with anything?"

"You were talking to her this morning," he accused. "That was who called."

"You heard?" He questioned.

"I knew it," Caleb said happily but quickly removed the winning grin from his face. "You want my advice?"

Jess shook his head once and grabbed a cigarette from his coat pocket. "No."

"Get over her," he said. "Falling for a girl like that leads to trouble for guys like us. She'll want more out of life and more that we can't give her."

"That's not what happened," he stuffed the cigarette between his teeth and his words became muffled. "Me and her, I think it was never gonna work no matter where we come from."

Caleb almost slumped forward in the sadness he heard tinged in his friend's voice. "Oh."

"I'm gonna go take a walk," Jess told him, changing the subject.

"Okay," his friend just nodded and let him go.

He headed back inside while Jess stepped out onto the street and into the surprisingly cool New York City air.

He reached into his pocket for his phone to call Luke and sighed when he came up empty. He must have left it near his mattress from this morning. From when Rory called.

The whole thing left a bad feeling in his chest. It was one thing to her to say no to the summer here because she wanted to stay with her mother. It was another thing to leave her mother and the country without so much as a second thought to his proposal.

He searched for his lighter in all of his pockets. Just like with his cell phone, he came up empty. Jess muttered, "Fuck."

There was a laugh coming from his right side and he turned his head to see who it came from. She was blonde, short hair, about his height. She wore jean shorts and a tank top and had a grin still in place after her laugh.

"Something funny?" Jess asked.

The girl shook her head. "I didn't mean to laugh. It's just - "

"What?" He quirked an eyebrow up.

Instead of answering, she reached into her shorts pocket and pulled out a lighter. "I'm a compulsive smoker, too."

Jess let out a small laugh too as she handed him the lighter and he lit the cigarette. "Thanks."

She watched him curiously. "Aren't you gonna ask me my name?"

"You want me to?" He smirked as he took the cigarette and held it between two fingers.

"Maybe," the blonde shrugged. "What's yours?"

"Jess," he said. "You?"

"I'm Shane," she smiled and held her hand out. "Nice to meet you."

...

Much of the day seemed to fly today. Roey wasn't sure if it was because she called her mother who sounded deliriously happy about her new relationship with Luke or because she didn't want to bring up Jess.

It seemed almost like time went slower when she tried not to think of him. Mostly she wondered what he was doing or who was he doing it with. Then she wondered if he was actually doing "it" and she felt insanely jealous over this girl she made up.

But she also told herself it was her fault. No, she didn't count on Caleb telling her not to hurt Jess. Not exactly. She did however have a say in what she did after. Rory never should have said no. She regretted it but didn't dare utter the words. Not to anyone but her own mind.

As they sat at a cafe and she overlooked Vienna, Rory brought herself back to where she was. She wasn't going to do this, not anymore.

She didn't want to pine over Jess Mariano and what could have been. She didn't want to imagine him with other girls or telling them the same things he'd told her. She didnt want to think about how different it'd have been had she said yes. She made a promise to herself that she would stop.

It was a promise she would surely break but it was the thought that counted right?

"Rory," Emily said. "You spaced out again, what are you thinking about?"

She shook her head and smiled. "It's just beautiful here."

"Well, we have a whole week left," Emily smiled in return and padded her napkin onto her lap. "Plenty of things to do, sights to see."

"I can't wait," she smiled and she meant it.

Last summer when she had been in Europe with her mother was the most fun she'd had in her life. It was so strikingly different than being with her grandmother in the same places.

It was a good different and after two weeks and many more weeks before summer ended, she was sure to have many comparisons.

The editor came back and took their orders. After compliments toward Emily, he left and Rory sat there in awe. She wished she had her grandmother's confidence. The idea of accepting the compliments reminded Rory of what happened in the dorm bathrooms with Jess. She quickly pushed that thought aside.

After lunch, the two Gilmore's headed for their destination of the day. They were going to see Hofburg Palace where Emily was extremely excited to take her granddaughter. She told her they'd need most of the day if not all to go and Rory happily obliged.

...

Jess wasn't a fan of a crowded places. After he went out for his walk and met Shane, they went to a diner for coffee. They made plans for later though he kept his birthday a secret. He headed back to his apartment and told his friends he now had plans.

At first they didn't believe him but when he told them he was meeting up with a girl for drinks, they invited themselves along. Jess didn't want them to but he eventually agreed.

There was another phone call from Rory that night and he watched as it rang. He didn't know what to say to her right now. He'd already accepted her decisions and he wasn't sure what else she wanted. Maybe it was just another happy birthday.

The phone went to voicemail and he turned it off then stuffed it away. Luke had already talked to him and Jess had even talked to his mother briefly as she wished him happy birthday on her Renaissance tour. He didn't know what else he needed it for.

...

Rory sighed when she put her phone down. She didn't know what she was thinking as she called Jess again. It was now pretty late, even later for her than him. But her mind wouldn't shut off to let her sleep.

She thought of a present back home, in her teenage bedroom. A jacket she had bought with her grandmother with saved money and wished she could give it to Jess. He didn't answer her call and her heart fell.

She held her phone tightly in her hand and looked around her dark hotel room. Silently, she moved her fingers over the keypad of the phone. It rang twice before it was picked up.

"Rory?" Lorelai said. "What's wrong?"

"I messed up," Rory told her.

"What happened?" She went into protective mother mode.

She was quiet a moment before she burst into sobs. She told her about the earlier phone call and the jacket and how she went to New York. Lorelai listened quietly and when she was done, she asked if her daughter wanted her advice.

"Please," Rory tried to laugh as she wiped her eyes.

"It sounds like he's hurt," she started. "Maybe you need to give him space."

"Space," she repeated. "I'm in Europe and we haven't talked for three weeks until today. I don't know how much more space I can give him."

"There are two things that can happen," she went on. "Either he will call you or you can call you."

"Or he never speaks to me again," Rory added.

Lorelai ignored that comment to continue her point. "If he calls, it can be anytime. It can be tomorrow, it can be two years from now. But if he does, he'll call on his own time."

"And?"

"And it might be a good thing or a bad thing," she said. "But if you call before his time is thought out, it may mess up his process."

"His process?" She wondered.

"Healing, dealing," Lorelai waved off the words. "But you also have to take care of yourself in the meantime."

"I am," she nodded once. "I just hope it's not a bad thing that any of it ends up being."

"There's only one way to find out, hun," she said.

Rory nodded again and wiped the last of the wet around her eyes. They talked for a little bit more before finally hanging up. She laid down, feeling a little better because she had talked about it with her mom. When she closed her eyes, she didn't see her usual dreams. She saw hope and expectations. She had slept until Emily had come in to wake her the next morning.

 **A/N: This chapter feels very off to me. Maybe because I've never been to Europe and I know next to nothing about writing about being in Europe. It could be considered filler and I'm sorry about that especially when it took me longer than usual to get it up.**

 **And I know. I introduced Shane. I really wanted this to parallel Washington and instead of bringing in a new character, I brought in one we know of. Don't worry, she won't be an epic love story.**

 **Also I think there will be very few chapters in the summer. Mostly because I feel I can't do Europe justice but also because it won't move the story along much. So there will at most be maybe one or two more like this - and hopefully written better. I'm sorry if it seems off. I'll admit its nowhere near my usual but I hope you disagree or like it**.


	17. Home again

**A/N: I wasn't sure how everyone would respond to Shane so thank you for the reactions! And thank you for the thoughts on Washington vs Europe. I hope no one minds the parallels either :)**

"Where did you say this happened?" Jess asked in shock.

"In Maine," Luke answered.

Jess sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "What the hell was she doing in Maine?"

"Some Renaissance Faire or a tour," he said.

"And the Renaissance people aren't watching to make sure they don't get into accidents?" He asked.

"Watching TJ might be a full time job," Luke joked.

Jess smirked. "Yeah that's probably true. So what's going on now?"

"Well, your mom has her arm in a sling and TJ broke a leg," Luke explained with a sigh. "I'm gonna head down there and help."

"You?" Jess laughed. "You're gonna help at a Renaissance Faire?"

"It's not like I'm gonna dress like them," Luke went on.

"If I catch you in tights -" Jess started.

"I can make you come with me, you know," Luke warned.

"Uncle," Jess grinned at his own play of saying uncle to his uncle.

He imagined his uncle giving him a glare through the phone. "Dont be a wiseass."

"So..." He shuffled, turning serious. "Is she...she's okay?"

"Yeah, she's fine," he told him. "It's just the arm."

Jess nodded. "Okay. Good."

"You can come, too," Luke said. "Visit."

"Maybe," he replied. "In a couple of days."

"Maybe wanna drive down there with me?" He wondered.

"I don't know," he took a breath. "You know, I'm busy with work. Maybe...just give well wishes."

"Jess," Luke said. "No one knows how your relationship with your mom is more than me."

"Right," Jess said.

"And if you did want to come see how she's doing after the accident or didn't, it'd be okay," he went on.

There was a pause for a moment before Jess spoke again. "Just send Liz my best wishes, all right?"

"Will do," Luke said. "I gotta go. Get Caesar and Lane ready to take over the diner while I'm gone."

"Right," he nodded once. "Go. Get ready to leave."

"Talk later?" He asked.

"Yeah, sure," he agreed.

They said goodbye and hung up. Jess looked around the street and reached into his pocket. He put away his phone and pulled out his cigarettes and lighter, a new gift from his girlfriend. Or was she his girlfriend? They hadn't exactly defined it yet but she'd spent the night so there was a strong chance she was.

He lit up the cigarette and began to walk. A taxi came his way and stopped. He waved it off and told them to keep going. Jess wanted to walk. To clear his head. Think about what he just learned.

A short while later, he found himself in front of Shane's building. There was no hesitation as he headed inside and up the stairs to her door. He knocked twice before it opened.

Shane smiled brightly as she saw Jess outside her door. "Hey!"

"Hey," he replied back.

"Did we have plans today?" She looked worried as if she forgot something.

"No, we didn't," he shook his head. "I just...can I come in?"

"Sure," she moved aside to let him in the door.

Her apartment was no bigger than his own but it was more neat. She lived alone and had a bed, kitchen, bathroom - small but a bathroom nonetheless - and a small area for the tv. Jess liked it here. He felt comfortable here.

She headed to her fridge. "You want a drink?"

"You got a beer in there?" He smirked.

She smiled in return with a nod and grabbed two out. Jess sat down on the small couch with a sigh. Shane sat beside him and handed him the bottle. "What's going on?"

"It's Liz," he said.

She nodded. "Your mom, right?"

"You remember," he noted.

"I do listen when someone says something and quickly moves to another subject," she commented. "What happened?"

"She was in a car accident with her husband," he said. "They're fine but my uncle is going up there."

"And you're not?" She wondered.

Jess shook his head and took a drink. "Wasn't planning on it."

"Why not?" She took her own drink. "She's your mom."

"In name only," Jess added.

"That bad?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Not good," he replied and took another drink.

Shane touched his arm gently. "Do you want to see her?"

"I dunno," he answered. "A son is supposed to, right? Mom is in the hospital for something, a son should want to see her right?"

"I guess it depends on the son and the mother," she told him.

Jess looked over at her and considered her words. "Huh."

...

Rory sat frustratedly on the plane. Emily had gotten them seats in first class and talked to one of the stewardesses. Rory couldn't tell if it was a good or bad conversation. It was the last day of the Europe trip and after two months, she wasn't sure she was ready to go home.

A few minutes later, Emily sat down with a heavy sigh. Rory looked over at her grandmother with a curious look. "What did they say?"

"Apparently the plane is not full so they're waiting a little longer for take off," she said.

"Oh," Rory frowned. "How long?"

"Who knows?" She waved off.

"Grandma?" She turned in her seat to face her better. "What's going on with you and Grandpa?"

Emily didn't answer at first. She took a moment to collect a way to tell her granddaughter about it in an appropriate way. Still, she wasn't sure what was. "It's complicated."

"Grandma," Rory tried again. "I'm a big girl. I can handle it whatever it is."

"I'm not sure what exactly it is," Emily smiled sadly at her. "But I'll have to find out soon now that we are going home."

She nodded in response. "Is everything going to be okay?"

"I'm not quite sure," she said thoughtfully. "Things between your grandfather and I have been strained at best. Especially since Pennilyn Lott."

"I'm sure Grandpa never meant to hurt you about that," Rory replied.

"He hid those lunches from me for our whole marriage," Emily said. "He must have known I'd be hurt."

"He should have told you about them but it doesn't take away that he loves you," she defended. She hated her grandparents in a fight.

"But that he loves me also doesn't take away that he hid something from me," she replied.

She considered her next words carefully. "Sometimes we do stupid things. We don't mean to be stupid or do the stupid thing but once it's happened, its happened and you can't take it back so you have to accept it."

Emily looked at her curiously. "Where did that come from?"

"Just something I've thought about lately," she half-smiled.

"Is this about that boy?" She asked. "The one you got that jacket for?"

"Yes," she admitted. "I did something stupid and to say nothing is happening there would be understatement."

"I'm sure that's not true," Emily said. "Any boy would be lucky to have you. Whatever happened can't possibly be so bad."

"Maybe," she said. "But what grandpa did, it doesn't have to be so bad, either."

"Don't worry about me and your grandfather, Rory," she said. "It's not something you need to think about."

"But I do," she said.

Emily shook her hand. "Let me take care of your grandfather. You think about your young man, all right?"

"All right," she said and decided not to comment on how he wasn't her young man.

The stewardess that Emily had been talking to walked back in. Rory wondered when she had even left exactly but pushed the thought aside. She told them that they are in fact taking off soon and to stay seated as they waited.

When she left, Emily leaned back in her seat and turned to Rory. "Finally."

...

When Rory finally made it to Stars Hollow, she felt exhausted. She first went to the her mother's house which was empty. Then she and Emily had headed to the inn where they found Lorelai engaged in a conversation with another staff member.

When she noticed her daughter, she exclaimed excitedly and hugged her tightly. "You're back! You're back!"

"I'm back!" Rory laughed. "Not breathing too well though!"

"Oh!" Lorelai pulled apart. "I'm just so excited! You're back!"

"You said that," Rory laughed again. She was so happy to see her mom again.

"I'm gonna repeat it until you're sick of it," she teased.

"Repeat what?" Emily asked as she walked in.

Lorelai was surprised to see her mother there but walked up to her anyway. "Hi, Mom."

"Hello, Lorelai," she said as her daughter tried to uncharacteristically hug her. "Dont. I smell like plane."

Lorelai stepped back and looked between her mother and daughter. "How was Europe?"

"Good," Rory beamed. "Beautiful."

"Rory is quite the traveler," Emily smiled. "She fit right in."

"As did you, Grandma," she said back.

Emily ducked her head down but brought it up fast at the compliment. "I should head back home, though. I can't begin to imagine what has been going on over there."

"Bye, grandma," Rory said as she herself tried to hug her.

"Airplane," Emily held her hand up.

"I don't care," Rory said and hugged her.

They broke away after the hug and emily said goodbye once again before she headed out the door.

"So..." Lorelai beamed. "How was Europe?"

"Europe was...amazing," Rory gushed as she went into detail of the things they did and places they'd seen. When she finished, she sighed sadly. "I think things are worse than ever for Grandma and Grandpa though."

"Did she say anything?" Lorelai frowned.

Rory shook her head. "Not much. But there was some things she said and she didn't really sound excited to go home."

"Well who would want to leave Europe and those fancy European men?" Her mother tried to make light.

The younger Gilmore didn't like that joke much and made a face. "I don't want to think about Grandma and the European men."

"Believe me, kid, me either," she tapped her arm. "Hey, what's wrong? Are you the one who's sad to leave the European men?"

"No," she said quickly.

Lorelai switched from jokes to mother mode in a second. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I'm just sad about Grandma," she crossed her arms.

"No, there's more," she pointed out. "Does this have to do with a certain someone who's been in New York the past two months?"

"No," she said and even to her own ears, it sounded like a lie.

"I'll take that as a yes," Lorelai confirmed.

Rory sighed and let her arms drop. "I don't even know why it bothers me."

"What bothers you?" She asked and there was a look on her face that showed she had an idea of what.

"Not talking to him," she said but noticed the look on her mother's face. "What did you think I meant?"

"What?" She said just as quick as Rory had answered seconds before. "I thought you meant that."

Rory eyed her suspiciously. "You know something."

"No."

"What do you know?"

"I know nothing," she answered with an obvious hint that she did know something. "Ask my mother, I'm sure she'd agree."

"Mom, what -"

Rory was cut off by Sookie screaming. The two Gilmore's looked over to where the chef had entered from and the youngest was quickly enveloped into a hug.

"You're back!" Sookie squealed.

Rory laughed. "So I hear!"

"I wanna hear everything!" Sookie clapped as soon she pulled away. "Tell me about Europe! What is Emily like in another country?"

"Questions for later," Rory said with a smile. "Now I wanna know how everyone is here. How's Davey?"

"Davey is amazing," she gushed about her son. "He's growing up so fast!"

"I'll have to see him later," she said then turned to her mother. "And we have to go to Luke's. I wanna see Luke."

"Oh, hon -" Lorelai said.

Panic showed on Rory's face. "What? Is Luke okay?"

"Sweetie, nothing like that," she reassured her. "Luke left today."

"What?" She asked. "Where did he go?"

"Liz got in a car accident," she explained. "He went to help out."

"Oh," Rory said sadly. "Does - does Jess know?"

"I'd imagine so," Lorelai nodded.

"And he's not going?" She asked, thinking of conversations where he mentioned his mother, even if vaguely.

Sookie interrupted. "Didn't Luke say he asked him to and Jess said no?"

Rory looked at her mother's best friend and nodded. "Oh. Well...good, I guess. I mean, they're not close."

Someone from the kitchen came out and called Sookie back in. She hugged Rory once more then headed back. Lorelai watched her daughter carefully. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "What were you going to tell me?"

"It can wait," she waved it off. "Later."

"Oh," she said. "Okay."

"Right now, let me get you something to eat because my baby is back," she squealed as she wrapped an arm around her and led her the way Sookie came.

...

Jess wasn't entirely sure he was making the right decision. On one hand, he owed it to Luke to help out but on the other, he knew it could end bad. He sighed as he got out of his car and pulled out a cigarette.

He shuffled his feet and headed for the back of the building for a quiet place to think. Jess lit up the cigarette and held it between his fingers then brougjt it back to his lips. Before he even realized it, the cigarette was finished and he threw down the butt and stepped on it.

Jess sighed, not being ready to face the responsibility of what was inside. He should have brought Shane, he told himself. Maybe if he had company he could do this.

But he did have company. With one last sigh, he held his head up and straightened his shoulders and walked inside.

The hospital was busy. That should be obvious to anyone. Doctors moved around while nurses followed and there was people at desks with computers and files. Jess was never a fan of hospitals. That was only proven by the present.

Jess asked someone at a desk for the room of Liz Danes and she told him what room on what floor. He thanked her quietly and headed into the elevator. There was no one on it which was a relief. A few more moments to himself, he thought. A few more moments to collect his thoughts.

The elevator chimed and he hit the right floor. It wasn't long before he found the right room too and he took a moment before twisting knocking on the open door. Jess did and stepped in to hear his mother squeal excitedly as her son walked in.

The look on Luke's face told him he was proud of him for coming. Jess gave him a silent nod as he let Liz hug him. Maybe this wasn't as bad of an idea after all.

 **A/N: Writing Jess/Shane as a couple is...weird to say the least. It's not just you as you read it.**

 **Short, I know. But I wanted to get it up. I've been having difficulty writing lately but I'm continuing even if chapters take a few extra days or they end a little shorter.**


	18. Another surprise occurs

**A/N: Bringing back the reminder of semi different personalities for**

 **both Rory and Jess. If it seems out of character for Jess to do**

 **anything, it's because my Jess is different. He had Luke growing up**

 **and is a little more open thanks to that.**

"So you've seen her?"

Jess nodded despite being on the phone. "Yeah. I've seen her. Avoided

TJ, though."

Shane laughed. "I'm sure your mom is glad you're there for her, at least."

"They have her on these painkillers," he said. "She's loopy. It

reminds me of growing up."

A moment of silence passes, neither knows what to say. "Are you still there?"

"I'm outside," he admitted. "Nurses said phones aren't so good in a

hospital. Plus I needed to smoke."

"Of course," she agreed. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," Jess shrugged. "I'm not the one who was in a car accident."

"You know what I mean," she said.

"I know," he said. "And you know what? I'm glad I came."

Shane sounded glad. "That's good."

"I'm not sure how good of a thing this but you know," he said. "It's good."

A hand comes on Jess' shoulder and he looked behind him. Luke had a

hint of a smile on his face which faded as his words came out. "Your

mom asked where you went."

Jess held up a finger to indicate one minute. "Hey, Shane? I gotta go."

"Oh, your mom?" She wondered.

"Yeah," he sighed. "I'll call later?"

"Yeah, we'll talk later," she said.

They hung up and he turned back to his uncle. "She still trying to

apologize for Christmas 1993?"

"She's moved onto '95," Luke answered.

"Huh," he said. "Guess that one was better than '92."

"You coming back in?" He asked. "She keeps telling me to visit TJ and

maybe you can distract her."

"Yeah, just let me finish this," he pulled out a fresh cigarette.

"Jess, come on," he said.

"All right," he stuffed the cigarette away in his pocket. "Jeez."

They walked back inside the hospital and back up to Liz's room. When

they reached her floor, Jess took a deep breath as he prepared himself

for whatever apologies she made it towards now.

He was stunned when they got to the doorway. Liz was no longer awake

but asleep. With her eyes closed and in a hospital bed, she seemed so

small. Jess wasn't sure he'd ever seen her look that way before.

"She must have fallen asleep after I came to get you," Luke spoke.

He walked into the room and Jess slowly followed. "It's weird seeing

her like this. I mean, I've seen her passed out unconscious before.

But this isn't that. This is..."

"I know," Luke said.

"She always seems like she's on the move," Jess said. "That she can't

be stopped unless she does something stupid that would stop her. I've

never seen her in a hospital bc of something as common as a car

accident before."

"Me, either," Luke sat down in a chair seated next to a wall. "She's

never been in an accident before, did you know that? Not even before

you."

"Do you know what exactly happened?" Jess asked.

"TJ was driving," he said. "Some jerk cut them off. I'm fuzzy on the

details other the guy was drunk."

Jess nodded. He wasn't going to mention how if anyone was assumed to

be drunk in the situation, he'd have expected it to be Liz. He

couldn't say it and she seemed like she really was doing better.

"Doctors say they should get out soon," he continued.

"And you're staying here?" Jess sat down too, in a seat beside his mother's bed.

"Yeah," Luke sighed. "Figures she could use some company then I'll help out a little."

"With the faire right?" He asked with his eyes still on Liz.

"The faire and I guess if anything needs to be done that requires arms and legs," he replied.

Jess let out a chuckle. "You're gonna help TJ, aren't you?"

Luke squinted. "I guess if she asks..."

"Oh, man," Jess laughed and touched his chin. He didn't notice the scruff that formed on his skin. "I'm glad she didn't ask me."

"Speaking of..." Luke said. "I actually have a favor to ask you."

Jess stopped his laughter at the serious tone. He knew if Luke asked, he would do it. Even if he asked him to help take care of his mom and stepfather. "What?"

"Will you take care of the diner for me?"

...

"Mom?" Rory asked as she strung her fingers together nervously.

"Yeah, sweets?" Lorelai asked from the couch.

They were at home now, the end of day and Rory couldn't get her mother's expression out of her mind from earlier. She thought something else would be bothering Rory about Jess and not that they weren't talking.

"When I said I didn't know why not talking to Jess bothered me," she started slowly from her spot in the doorway. "You seemed like there was something more that should bother me."

"Oh," Lorelai just said.

"That right there," she commented. "What is it? You know something."

"Ah," she breathed. "I don't not know something."

"Mom, I know you think Jess is a subject to tiptoe around," she sat down on the lone chair.

"It's not that completely," she said. "I mean, did I like the guy? Maybe. Do I want to torture him because he got you to sleep with him and left the next day, not once but twice? It has crossed my mind."

"I told you I made the choice -"

"I know," she said. "Believe me, I do. I've also been there before."

"Jess isn't like Dad," she shook her head.

"I'm not saying he is," she said softly. "It's just...I don't like seeing you hurt."

"I'm fine," Rory told her and Lorelai gave her a look. "I am."

"No, sweetie, you're not," she said. "Something happened before Europe. I'm not counting the obvious of what happened but between when you came home and you left, something happened."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Rory denied.

Lorelai gave her daughter another look. "You said you went out of town for something. Where did you go?"

"Hartford," she lied.

"Uh-huh, you were gone longer than a Hartford trip," she said.

"I got lost in a bookstore," she added.

Lorelai didn't buy it. "Did you go to New York?"

Rory looked away but whispered. "He wasn't home."

"And?"

"And what?"

"What happened?" She asked. "I'm trying to understand here. Did you go to change your mind about going there for the summer?"

"Yes," Rory admitted. "But it doesn't matter because he wasn't home and his roommate was."

"Did his roommate say something?" She sighed. "What did he say?"

"The gist of it is Jess was hurt by me saying no and to not hurt him anymore," she answered.

"Oh, hun," Lorelai replied sadly. "I didn't know."

"Which is exactly why I didn't say anything," she said then a thought occurred to her. "You deflected answering the question."

"What question?" Lorelai asked innocently.

"What do you know that you don't want me to know?" Rory asked. "I won't get mad. Just...tell me."

"Okay," she sighed. "But remember I'm just a messenger and Luke said it in passing to me and I wasn't sure how it would make you feel."

"Okay," Rory said now. "What is it?"

Lorelai took a deep breath. "Jess is seeing someone."

"Seeing someone as in...dating?" She managed to ask after the speechless surprise.

"Yeah," she said and watching the look on her daughter's face, she added, "I'm sorry."

Rory shook her head twice. "I didn't expect him to be single forever."

"But you hoped if he was with someone, it would be you," Lorelai stated.

Her daughter said nothing to that comment which told her she was right. "Do you know if it's serious?"

"Luke only said it in passing so no," she said.

"Oh," she said.

"Hun?"

"Yeah?"

"What do you suggest we watch tonight?" Lorelai attempted to change the subject.

Rory looked up at her, her thoughts clearly somewhere else. "Um, you pick."

"All right," she said and shuffled through the selection on the table. "Riding the bus with my sister again? It's a classic."

"Yeah, put it in," Rory managed a smile and came over to sit beside her mother but not before she slipped the vhs in.

When Rory was seated, Lorelai put her arm around her daughter. She leaned closer to her mother and she knew it would be okay as long as she had her mom. The movie started and they stayed seated like that the entire time. Neither even touched the candy.

...

The next morning, Rory woke up feeling better. She wasn't sure if it was because it was a new day or maybe sleep gave a fresh perspective but whatever it was, she was grateful for it.

Lorelai sat at the kitchen table with poptarts and coffee. "Morning."

"Morning," she replied sleepily.

"Coffee?" Lorelai offered.

Rory took a cup out of the cupboard and poured herself a cup then turned around. "No Luke's this morning?"

"I was hoping we could talk," Lorelai said.

"If there's more I'm missing and Jess is also now going to be a father..." She rambled as jokingly as she could.

"No, nothing like that," she waved her hands in front of her. "I wanna know how you are."

"I'm good," Rory sat down.

"You're good?" She asked to make sure.

"Well I'm not about to skip through the grass that the guy I thought I was in love with has moved on but you know, getting better," she said.

Lorelai's expression changed when she said 'thought she was in love with'. It quickly went back to unreadable. "So... thought?"

"It was crazy to believe I loved him," Rory explained. "I mean, I couldn't tell Dean that I did and I had known him longer so how could this be it?"

"They were different situations," Lorelai defended to her own surprise.

"Yeah," she agreed. "One I had an actual relationship with and the other I was a two night stand."

Her words and her tone didn't match, Lorelai noted. She didn't press on it and hoped that maybe she could find the right words to say next.

"You know," she finally said. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here right? It doesn't need to be some awkward thing because we're mother and daughter or because hes Luke's nephew."

"Since when has being mother and daughter made anything awkward?" Rory smiled.

Lorelai smiled back. "You have a point there."

"I'm okay, Mom, really," she promised and took a sip of her coffee. "I'll make you a deal all right, when I go back to school, I'll hook up with ws many people as possible okay?"

"Deal," Lorelai grinned.

Rory stood up and downed the rest of her hot coffee, barely making a face. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

"Okay," she nodded and she believed her. "Now how about you get ready and we'll go get the better coffee?"

"And another deal has been made," Rory grinned brightly as she went back into her room and shut the door behind her.

Lorelai watched after she left sadly. She hoped Rory was right.

...

On their way to the diner, Lorelai looped her arm with Rory's. The walk was always nice and easy and both were grateful for it today. With Rory going back to Yale soon, it was nice to just be how they used to be.

"You think you're ready to head back to the land of higher learning?" Lorelai asked.

"I think so," she replied. "There's only so much break you can take."

"Speak for yourself," Lorelai scoffed teasingly. "I can break with the best of them."

"I guess its a good thing you're not the one headed back to school, huh?" Rory smiled at her mom.

"Always," Lorelai said and pulled her closer. "Though I am going to miss my firstborn."

"Firstborn as in there's another?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I guess you should know," she sighed. "I'm pregnant."

"What?" Rory gasped and almost broke her arm away.

Lorelai laughed. "My, that was fun."

"Why are you joking about being pregnant?" Rory scolded.

"Because you should have seen the look on your face," she explained with a laugh.

"Luke's?" She questioned.

"Well, we haven't actually -" she made a bow chicka bow wow noise.

The youngest seemed surprised at that. "Oh."

"I'm sure soon," she continued. "All the girls go crazy for Butch Danes. I'm just waiting for my chance."

"Gross," Rory made a face.

"So what?" Lorelai said. "We can talk about your sex life but not mine?"

"I didn't volunteer the details of my sex life," she said.

"Right but now I know so..." She said.

"So now you block it out," Rory finished.

"If only," Lorelai made a face. "It's hard enough picturing you as an adult but on that hard earned, pain in the ass Yale mattress with my boyfriend's nephew? Blasphemy."

"Ssh," Rory said even though she knew her mother was teasing. "I don't really want the whole town hear."

"Miss Patty, Taylor, Babette?" She wondered. "Or...Dean maybe?"

"Maybe all of the above," she admitted. "Dean wanted to get back together. I don't really want him to find out definitely."

"Right," she nodded.

"Weren't we talking about you?" Rory turned it back on her as they reached the diner. "Let's go back to your love life."

"Well, my love life is stranded in Maine," she said and pushed open the door. "It may be at a stalled point right now."

The door chimed as they entered and Rory's back was to the inside as she laughed. "But once he comes back, right?"

Lorelai didn't answer but stood there quietly. Rory didn't understand what was wrong so she turned around. She expected maybe to see Luke. That he had come back sooner and she was speechless to see him.

That was not who was there, though.

Jess didn't notice they had entered the diner, he was cleaning the counter. But wben he finally did look up, he stood just as frozen as Rory.

Lorelai whispered to her daughter, "We can go if you want."

"No," she shook her head and broke out of her daze. "We came for coffee."

"Right," she nodded in agreement and they noticed there was no empty tables. Lorelai gave her daughter another look as she asked the question she's just asked silently. Rory shook her head again as they went to sit at the counter.

Jess came to them, his face unreadable. "Hey."

"Hey," Rory said back.

"Hi," Lorelai inserted herself. "Two coffees and pancakes, please."

"Coming up," Jess said as he disappeared into the kitchen what seemed too quickly.

"Awkward," Lorelai commented.

"Yeah," Rory said. "I wonder what he's doing here."

"Luke probably," she replied. "Luke isn't here so maybe he's helping."

"Right," she nodded. Of course he would help Luke. Hadn't he told her Luke had done a lot for him? Of course he would be here.

"You okay?" Her mother asked.

Rory turned to her. "You know? I think I'm gonna go. See Lane, maybe."

"Hun, you don't have to," Lorelai said.

"I want to," she managed a smile.

Jess came back out with two coffees and saw Rory now stood. He gave the coffee to Lorelai as he watched his ex...whatever she was to him curiously.

"Can you put one in a to go cup?" Rory asked him.

"Sure," he said as he grabbed one of them from underneath the counter and poured it in.

Rory took the cup from him, careful to avoid any touch. "Thanks."

"Rory -" he said.

"Yeah?" She said.

"It's good to see you," Jess told her.

Rory nodded once. "Thanks."

She walked out of the door already and he looked toward Lorelai who sat there as if she hadn't been on the edge of her seat through the interaction. "Can you box up on of the pancake orders?"

"Yeah, I can do that," he said and disappeared back into the kitchen.

...

It didn't take long for Jess to find Rory. He remembered their confrontation on the bridge and headed straight there. He stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets and felt his cigarette pack and the lighter. He quickly pulled his hands out and walked closer to her.

She sat with her legs dangling over the edge and it was obvious she had been deep in thought. She didn't even hear his approach until he spoke.

"You ran out of there pretty fast that a guy can assume it was him," he said.

"Well, you know what they say about people who assume," she replied.

"I think it's fairly safe to say I am definitely an ass," Jess said.

Rory finally looked at him. "I think I was one, too."

"I shouldn't have gotten mad at you on my birthday," he sighed. "It's just when I heard you left town to go somewhere else but you wouldn't come with me."

"I know," she replied. "I'm sorry about that if it helps."

"A little," he said. "But you know, I wasn't asking out of obligation or some reason close to that. It wasn't just because of what happened."

"I know that, too," she smiled. "Did you know I only had one serious relationship? Or actually, one at all?"

"No," he shook his head.

"I'm not really experienced with guys," she admitted. "I'm not good at expressing how I feel or saying things I should know how to say."

"No one is," he added.

"True," she laughed lightly. "But I did want to come with you. I wasn't sure how to have both worlds, you and my mom and I should have figured out a way."

"It's okay," he said simply.

Rory nodded. "Because you have a girlfriend?"

"You heard about that?" He asked but didn't wait for an answer. "I guess she's not technically my girlfriend. We haven't really put a label on it."

"Uh-huh," she stood up and faced him.

"Her name's Shane," he told her.

Rory wasn't sure she wanted to know. "As in, come back?"

"You'd like her," he ignored her comment.

"Really?" She asked.

"Yeah, she's a lot like me," he continued.

"That's great," she said though her tone said it was anything but. "Look, Jess, I really don't want to talk about how great this girl you're seeing is."

He nodded silently. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I don't want to talk about anything," she said. "I wanted to be alone but you came anyway."

"Because I thought we could talk," he said.

"Jess," she tool a deep breath. "Don't you know it's killing me? I said no to the summer but not to you. You took it as a full no and went back home and now you come back with a sort of girlfriend and I'm supposed to what? Talk about how great she is?"

"No," he faltered. "You're right. We don't have to talk about anything."

"Just go, please," she said.

"Rory," he didn't move from his spot. "Don't you think it kills me too? Seeing you right now?"

"No," she said. "Because you have moved on. I obviously didn't mean that much to you."

"Shit, Rory," he muttered and she stared at him bewildered. "Did you ever consider part of why I moved on is because of you?"

"What?" She was surprised.

"I don't trust many people," he said. "I like just as many as I trust. But you...you I trusted. You I...liked."

Rory pretended to not hear the way his voice paused. "So what does that mean?"

"It means that if I thought about you, it'd kill me," he answered her. "And I don't want that. I don't want to be someone who could barely trust but come undone because of this one person."

"So what then?" She asked. "You're with Shane. Whatever we felt, it doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters," Jess almost yelled. "Because we felt it."

"Yeah?" She asked. "Well, how about this then? Shane - are you sleeping with her?"

Jess shook his head. "That is what doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," she said. "It matters to me. Are you?"

He gave her a look that answered the question for him. She nodded and bit her lip. "Rory."

"You are," she stated. "All this bullshit about how much you care about me and how it's killing you to be near me but yet you're sleeping with her."

"Rory," he tried again.

"I'm gonna go," she said and walked past him.

Jess grabbed her hand as she passed and she stopped in her tracks. They stared at each other for a good minute before she shook his hand loose and continued off of the bridge.

"Fuck," he said as he sat down on the wood himself and lit a cigarette.

 **A/N: They needed a confrontation just like how they had one at Doose's! But when will they learn right? It will be worth it, I promise.**

 **Also thank you for reviews and thoughts! Just know that whenever I see one, it inspires me to keep going. It also inspires me to not just write anything for you to get an update. I hope you like despite the angtsy literati.**


	19. Talking about it

**A/N: I don't know why the last chapter beginning is so messed up format wise. I even tried to fix it and it stayed that way. I'm just glad you all understood it. I might try to fix it again but I don't want to delete the chapter either...**

"He's what?"

Lane screeched the words as she jumped off her bed. She had been eagerly sitting by, a bag of chips in her lap as she listened to her best friend catch her up on all things in her life, including a certain Mariano boy. When she got to what happened on the bridge earlier, her friend was outraged.

"Hes sleeping with her," Rory repeated. "The new girl he's sreing. Shane. What the hell kind of name is Shane?"

"I guess a nickname for Shannon?" Lane took a guess but quickly went back to her anger. "How could he be sleeping with someone else already?"

Rory shook her head. "I guess it didn't mean as much to him."

"That's gotta be a lie," Lane disagreed. "Everything that happened, everything you said! What about that?"

"Who knows?" Rory sighed and sank into her chair. "All I know is he's claiming it hurts so much to be around me but meanwhile when he goes back to New York, he has a nice, warm not empty bed to go back to."

"I say we torture him," Lane said.

"What?" Rory laughed for the first time since starting the story. "No."

"He hurt you!" She exclaimed as if Rory didn't know. "You have to want some kind of punishment."

"I honestly don't know what I want," she replied. "I wanted him. I still do. God knows why."

"Rory, pal, best friend," Lane kneeled in front of her. "Don't you see what's going on here?"

"No," she replied.

Her friends sighed. "He wants you, too."

"Well he has a funny way of showing it," Rory huffed. "I guess I missed it through the fact that he's having sex with someone else."

She ignored the sarcasm and continued. "My guess is Jess was hurt when you said no to going to New York and -"

"I didn't say no!" She interrupted. "Not entirely."

"Rory?" She asked. "Let me finish?"

"Right, sorry," she said.

"He was hurt and whenever he met this girl, he decided to try to move on," she told her. "So, really, he's with her because he wasn't with you."

"Uh-huh," Rory was skeptical. "So he's sleeping with her because he's not sleeping with me?"

"He's sleeping with her because some people think of sex as part of getting over someone," Lane said.

Rory still didn't buy it. "She's practically his girlfriend, Lane! He's dating her, probably for months. It's more than trying to get over me. He is over me."

"I don't believe it," she disagreed. "If he was just trying to get over me, and he was doing that to get over me, he wouldn't be dating her, Lane."

"Maybe there's something we don't know about this," Lane suggestef.

"Luke sure seems to know it," Rory crossed her arms stubbornly. "Like wouldn't know if it was just sex."

"Rory," Lane sighed. "I know what you're doing."

"What am I doing?" She asked.

"You're trying to tell yourself it meant nothing to Jess because if you didn't believe that, then you're forced to accept he's moved on," she explained.

"He has moved on," Rory pointed out. "And it didn't mean as much to him."

"I know you believe that -"

"Lane," Rory shook her head and uncrossed her arms in defeat. "It hurts. It hurts to think he didn't care and this is what happened. It hurts even more to think he did care and this still happened."

"I know," she nodded sadly.

"And seeing him talk about her so casually," she continued. "Saying how great she is, how I'd like her. How can he seriously tell me I'd like her? The whole situation hurts and it sucks and I'm just trying to not hurt more than I have to."

Lane watched her friend sit back in even more defeat. Rory just seemed tired. She wasn't sure if it was tired of talking about Jess or the situation as a whole. Whichever it was, the latter was definitely part of it.

"You wanna know what I want?" Rory asked. "I wanna take it back. All of it."

"I thought you said you didn't regret it," Lane said.

"I didn't," she said. "But this feeling right now? I just want to stop feeling it. I want to be able to see him and see Luke's nephew and not this guy I'm in love with and know what it's like to share the most intimate thing you can share with someone. I want it to stop."

Lane rushed to her friend's aide as she saw tears start to come down. "It'll be okay, Rory, I promise."

She sniffed. "How can you be sure? It feels pretty hopeless right now."

"Things always seem hopeless right?" Lane tried to comfort her. "My mom kicked me out, remember?"

"I'm so selfish," Rory pulled away. "I'm rambling about a boy to you and I forgot you had a much bigger problem to deal with! I'm the worst friend, aren't i?"

"No, you're not," she told her. "And it all worked out. I live with my band and I have my own room and there's no hiding. And besides, a broken heart is a problem, too."

Rory sniffed, nodded and wiped at her wet eyes. "I just feel like I'm being stupid. I feel like I'm hanging on to this past relationship that wasn't even a relationship."

"You love him," Lane said softly. "It's not stupid."

"I don't want to love him," she admitted.

Lane wiped her friend's face for her. "The best ones don't give you much of a choice, do they?"

Rory laughed quietly and hugged her friend again. Maybe this was exactly what she needed to try to feel better.

...

"How are you feeling?" Jess asked his mom through the phone.

"Good, I'm good!" She sounded in a mood that described how she felt. "They have me on some pain medication so the arm doesn't hurt."

Jess nodded. "And you're not gonna take some of that medication when you leave?"

"No!" She laughed. It was good they found humor in her past, especially when they used to fight over those kind of accusations. "They wanna keep me on them for a few more days, see how I feel."

"So your arm is healing?" He asked.

"I think so," she said. "It's still in a sling..."

"Which isn't that bad because it's still connected to your body, right?" He smirked.

Liz laughed again. "Exactly."

"How's...TJ?" He managed to get out as best as he could.

"He's good," she answered. "Recovering. I've had the nurses wheel him in to visit."

"That's good," he said. "Liz?"

"Yeah, baby?" She said.

"You're...you're happy right?" He said quietly. "I mean, TJ really is a good guy after all and not like your other boyfriends or husbands, right?"

"He is," she replied. "He's a really good guy, Jess. I wish you would get to know him."

"Maybe one day," he said and he felt like he could mean it.

"Does this mean you'll give him a shot?" Liz asked.

"It means I'm reevaluating some things that have happened," he replied.

"Oh yeah?" She wondered. "Like what?"

Jess shook his head, not exactly at the point where he opened up to his mother. "Just things."

"Oh," she said sadly. Liz obviously expected him to open up.

"Liz, you know it's not like that," he rubbed his eyes.

"I just wish you could talk to me," she said.

"I talk to you," he said, knowing that wasn't what she meant.

"You know that's not what I mean," she said to state the obvious sadly.

"It's gonna take time," he replied. "That's all I can tell you."

"Okay," she said with a sniff. There was then muffled voices and he heard his name spoken somewhere in the middle of it. "Hey, baby? Luke's here and he wants to talk to you."

"All right," he agreed and hoped he didn't know much of what happened on the bridge earlier with Rory.

Luke came on the line after a few seconds and Jess braced himself. "How's the diner?"

"The diner's good," he answered, shocked at himself being surprised that came first. "Caesar's helping hold the fort, too."

"Good, good," he said. "And Kirk isn't being too annoying?"

"When isn't he?" Jess joked. "Nah, it's fine. I got a handle on him."

"You do?" He asked.

"Yeah," Jess sat down on the couch in the upstairs apartment, the pacing he'd been doing finally got to him. "I give him what he asks for, he's so surprised about it that he doesn't ask for anything else until next time he comes in."

"That's genius," Luke commented.

"I don't even give any remarks to the crazy way he wants things," he explained.

"See, that's where I mess up," his uncle pointed out. "So other than that, everything's good? Taylor not giving trouble?"

"Taylor seems to think I'm some kind of a hoodlum because I have a leather jacket," Jess said.

"That sounds very Taylor like," he agreed.

"And Miss Patty? Don't even get me started on her," Jess warned.

Luke sounded ready to laugh. "That bad, huh?"

"She's grabbed my ass more than once," he groaned. "Tried a few other times but I've learned how to move away from her."

"It's something every man has to go through," Luke said. "It's like a Stars Hollow rite of passage to have their ass grabbed by her."

"You mean even you -"

"Don't remind me."

Jess let out his own small laugh. "Well, that makes me feel better."

"Well, this isn't," Luke sighed and Jess felt himself stiffen. He knew what was coming. "Lorelai told me Rory ran out of the diner when she saw you."

"Right," he nodded. "She did."

"Any particular reason why?" He asked.

"Aside from we've slept together multiple times then she went to Europe and I'm seeing someone?" He sarcastically replied.

He could almost see the glare Luke gave. "Don't be a wiseass."

"What?" Jess said innocently. "It's what happened. I hadn't seen her in months and she ran out. I didn't do anything."

"And it didn't have to do with the seeing someone thing?" He wondered.

"About that," he stood up again. "How did she know about that?"

"I may have mentioned it to Lorelai," Luke said in his own innocent tone. "It wasn't even supposed to come out."

"So you told your girlfriend and she told her daughter," he nodded. "That's great."

"So you weren't going to tell her about Shane?" He asked. "Doesn't that seem a little insensitive, considering?"

"I never said I wasn't going to tell her," he said. "I just preferred to have been the one to actually tell her."

"So you and Shane...is it serious?" Luke said as slow as possible. He was uncomfortable asking about his nephew's love life but he also felt like he owed it to Rory to know.

"I don't know," Jess answered, not commenting on how weird it is to be asked this by his uncle. "We're hanging out. We have fun."

"And Rory?"

"What about Rory?"

"That's over?" He wondered.

"It was over the moment she packed her bags for Europe, Uncle Luke," he replied.

"I know it may seem that way," he said. "But I know her, Jess."

"I thought I did," he commented. "But I'm not sure if I did. Maybe that's the problem."

"I know I don't usually get involved in your...personal life," Luke said awkwardly.

"I know," Jess nodded as he tried again to sit down again. "You're looking out for her. It's okay."

"I'm looking out for you, too, you know," he said.

"I know," he nodded again. There was a few seconds of silence until Jess cleared his throat and had a thought. "Did Liz just hear all of this?"

"Oh, no," Luke replied. "I'm breaking a few rules by having a cell phone. Or she is and I went out into an abandoned hallway. Figured it'd be better to not have an audience."

"Good thinking," he said in relief. The last thing he needed right now was his mother knowing about him and Rory.

"I should actually head back in," Luke said suddenly. "Your mom's probably wondering whats going on."

"Right," he agreed. "Can you not...not tell her any of this?"

"Yeah," he replied. "Not a word."

...

Rory slipped into her house quietly. She had finally left Lane's house and was worried about the questions her mother was bound to ask. She looked around the house and didn't see the person in question.

She shut the door behind her and started a walk towards her room. A voice said hi and she stopped in her tracks as she turned to face her mother.

"Thought you'd get past me?" Lorelai smirked.

"Is it bad if I say yes?" Rory asked hopelessly.

"Sweetie," Lorelai shook her head and walked down the stairs to the daughter. "You know you can talk to me, right? You don't have to try to run to your room to avoid me."

"I'm not trying to avoid you," she said as she turned back towards their living room.

"Then what?" She wondered. "I won't judge if that's what you're worried about."

"I'm not," she said. "It's just...I was going to do something. Something you might not like."

"Oh," she said surprised. "What were you going to do?"

Rory sighed. "Months ago, before that night in the dorm, I got Jess a birthday present. And I wanted to give it to him for closure, I guess but I also wanted him to have it."

"Ah," Lorelai shuffled her feet. "And you think I'll tell you not to?"

"Maybe," she said. "Yes."

"I won't," she told her. "I mean, it's his technically. You got it for him. You wouldn't want to keep something you bought for someone else no matter whats going on between the two of you."

"Right," Rory agreed.

"I will ask this, though," she said. "Why the abrupt disappearance? And he followed you out so something happened."

"I couldn't take seeing him there and having to pretend I didn't feel anything," she admitted.

Lorelai nodded in understanding. She knew that feeling so she switched to the second part. "And after?"

"After," she sighed. "I went to the bridge. Jess found me. We fought. I left."

"You fought?" She asked. "About Europe?"

"About his new girlfriend," she answered. "I don't really feel up to getting into this and if I do, I'll lose my nerve to give him the present."

"Okay," she replied, feeling stunned.

"Thank you," she whispered to her mother before heading to her room and coming out with a bag. "I'll be right back, okay?"

Lorelai nodded as she watched her daughter head out of the house. She couldn't help but wish the whole Jess thing hadn't happened. It was obvious Rory fell in love with him even though she denied it to her. What was even more obvious though was how much she hurt after it didn't lead to anything. She just hoped it wouldn't leave a permanent scar after this was all over.

...

Rory headed out into the main square of town. She had assumed that Jess would be at the apartment rather than her mother's inn. When she saw the light upstairs, she knew she was right and took a deep breath.

Lane's words rang out in her head - _If you really want to get over him, you have to rid yourself of what reminds you of him._

Did she really want to get over him? Sometimes she didn't think so. Other times she hated this feeling and a resounding yes vibrated in her ears. So here she walked, through the town she grew up, a shopping bag in hand as she had not been able to wrap the gift before other... instances occurred.

The diner was closed, she noticed. That was weird. It was night but she didn't remember them closing so early before. Had she really spent that long at Lane's? She pouted as she thought of how lorelai had probably eaten her pancakes as well.

Roey knocked a couple of times before she saw the curtain move slightly. Jess peaked out and when he saw her, his expression softened. She wasn't sure what to make of that and didn't get much of a chance to before he walked over and unlocked the door.

"What are you doing here?" Jess asked.

"I have something for you," she said in the most confidence she could manage.

"Okay," he said and moved aside so she could come in.

Rory handed him the bag and he took it out of curiosity as he sat down. "It was your birthday present. I got it for you back in May but them everything happened and I wanted you to have it even if its late."

"You didn't have to get me anything," he told her as he looked inside.

She shrugged. "I just thought it would look nice on you."

Jess pulled out the denim jacket and held it up. "It's nice. Thank you."

"Nice?" She asked.

"Yes," he said then smiled softly. "I like it. Really."

"Good," she smiled back. "I'm glad."

"Rory?" He said quietly. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too," she said. "And I shouldn't expect you to not move on. You have every right to."

"You can be mad," he told her with a small smirk. "I mean, if I heard you were with some guy, I'd react the same way."

She nodded. "But I'm not and you are. It's okay, really. I go back to school soon. This might not have worked, you know?"

"Right," he said. Neither seemed to actually believe their own words.

"I should go," she said.

Jess stood up and they were so close. "Rory, I did care. I still do. I don't want you to think I didn't or I dont."

"I know," she said. "Same."

"Okay," he said quietly again.

"Bye, Jess," she said.

"Bye, Rory," he replied.

Rory gave a small nod as she headed out the door of the diner and Jess stood there in the silence. He looked at the denim jacket she had just given him and wondered if he was doing the right thing.

 **A/N: I have nothing much to say besides this chapter did not want to be written so i hope it's not too bad. Next is the return to Yale though so maybe it will get easier. Thank you for all the reviews and feedback :) they mean so much, really.**


	20. Back to school

"Careful," Rory told two men as they moved a couch into her new dorm. "If you stain that, my grandmother will hunt you down and kill you."

They nod twice and their faces show they believe her. Rory watched as they entered the room and turned around just in time to see Marty approach. "Marty!"

"Hey, Rory," he said to her with a smile.

She moved to hug him and pulled away with a huge smile of her own. "Are you living here now?"

"I'm living here," he gave a small shrug as if it was no big deal. "How was your summer?"

She shrugged, not wanting to bring up a certain guy who happened to still be in her hometown. "I went to Europe with my grandmother."

"Oh, wow," he said. "I've never went to Europe. I've seen pictures. It seems nice."

"It was very nice," Rory nodded. "What about you?"

"Nothing that extravagant," he said. "I didn't leave the country, after all."

"I'm sure it was good," she smiled.

There was a look in his eyes, Rory couldn't tell what it was. But the way he was looking at her...made it seem like he liked her. Or at least that was what she thought.

She tried to think of something other than how he looked at her. She looked back to the open door of her room and realised how quiet it is. "I can't believe I beat Paris here."

"Maybe she's just late," Marty offered.

"Paris is never late," she said. "Normally, she would want to get dibs on the best room first. Then she would set the furniture exactly as she wants it."

"Have you talked to her?" He asked.

"No," she noticed with a grim look. "I'm gonna call her. Hold on."

Marty followed Rory into her dorm. The men who had been moving the couch had just finished placing it as they meant to and walked out the door to get more furniture.

Rory dialed on her phone and when it picked up, she said, "Paris, hey, it's Rory."

"Rory," she said very monotone like. "Hello."

"Hey," she said again. "So I'm in our room at Branford and I'm wondering how I could have possibly best you here."

"Asher's dead," Paris said.

"What?" She asked in surprise.

A sigh escaped Paris. "He died two weeks ago in Oxford."

"Oh my god," she said. "I'm sorry. Paris -"

"He had a heart attack," Paris told her.

"Heart attack?" Rory repeated. "It wasn't during - was it?"

"No, Rory," Paris sighed again. "The great man was not brought down by my vagina."

"Sorry," Rory said. "It's - it's terrible. Paris, I'm so sorry."

Paris began the story of what happened, of how Asher was reading A Midsummer Night's Dream to a class. When she finished, she told her how his kids reacted and was obviously frustrated at them.

Rory wasn't sure what to say. She wanted to help her friend.

Finished for real this time, Paris said, "I'm sad."

"I know," Rory replied.

"I should go," she told her. "There's still a lot of things to do."

"Right," she agreed. "I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah," she agreed. "Bye."

"Bye," Rory said and hung her phone. She turned back to Marty who had been quiet all through the phone call. "Asher Fleming died."

"In bed?"

"No."

"Damn. I lost the pool."

Rory felt the hint of a smile but stopped herself. "Hey, do you wanna go get some coffee? I've been instructing movers since I got here and I can really use a caffeine fix."

"All right," he agreed as the movers again entered the room with a few more chairs and lamps.

"Right," she muttered. "Just wait a few minutes. I think I'm supposed to see them finish."

"Oh," Marty frowned. "Okay. We can wait."

"Thanks," she smiled at him and walked over to the men that her grandmother had hired.

They finished less rhan ten minutes later, having had moved all the bigger things in already. Rory spoke with them quietly and thanked them. The men left and she walked back over to Marty. "Coffee?"

"Coffee," he agreed.

They walked out to the coffee carts and ordered their drinks. Each paid for their beverage and began to walk through the crowds. Before either of them got to start another conversation, someone bumped into Marty.

"Didn't see you there," the one who did the bumping said.

"It's all right," Marty told him. "No harm done."

"I know you," a blonde guy said who seemed to be part of a group with the one who bumped into Marty. "Don't tell me. I wanna guess. I'm seeing a uniform of some sort."

"Maytag repairman," another one replied.

"I've bartended for you at a couple of your parties," Marty added.

"That's right," the blonde said then turned to Rory. "He makes a kick ass margarita."

Marty let out a small chuckle. "Thanks."

The blonde seemed pleased with that reaction. "It's good to see you again. What's your name?"

"Marty," he told him then turned beside him. "And this is Rory."

"Hi," he said to her. "So I'm assuming your financial situation hasn't changed and you're available for hire this year too?"

"Nothing's changed," he told the blonde.

"Great," he perked up. "I'll give you a call."

They began to walk away, one of the other guys made a snide comment about Marty's shirt before they disappeared. He sighed. "I really don't like those guys."

...

"Coffee!" Lorelai shouted as she entered the diner. She sat at the counter and perched her purse beside her as she waited.

Jess came out of the kitchen and right to her. "Luke's not back yet."

She frowned. "How much longer?"

"Hard to say," he said. "Could be a few days, could be weeks."

"Don't toy with me," she pointed at him. "Without coffee, there's no telling what I'll do."

"He's coming back in three days," Jess replied as he poured Lorelai a cup and pushed it over to her. She looked at him strangely at his reply. "Figured it was better to not risk a Gilmore without coffee."

"Oh," she said surprised. A hundred thoughts crossed her mind at his words, he could tell. "So you know that a Gilmore without coffee is like Superman with kryptonite."

"I do," he nodded. "I learned a few things being around this place. I serve you every day, you know."

"That you do," she agreed and sipped from her cup. "So."

"So...?" He waited.

"Have you talked to Rory?" She slowly asked.

"Huh," he said in response.

Lorelai gave him another look. "What does that mean?"

Jess shook his head. "Just that I should have expected that question and yet it still surprised me."

"I have a gift," she shrugged proudly. "So...have you?"

"Nope," he pouted out his lip and shook his head at the same time. "Don't you talk to her that you don't need to ask me?"

"I do talk to her," Lorelai said. "But Rory hasn't exactly been open with all things involving you, let's say."

"Ah," Jess said. "Well, the answer is no. Really. I haven't seen her or talked to her through words or volume."

"Oh," she drank more coffee. "By choice?"

"Hers or mine?" He asked.

"Rory's the one shutting you out?" She asked.

Jess was silent as he tried to find the right words. He didn't answer and instead changed his words. "You want something to eat? Caesar's cooking but I'm sure I can get in there."

"No, I'm good," Lorelai replied, obviously noticing the change in his demeanor. "Just more coffee?"

"You got it," he said.

He took the coffee pot out again and poured more into her cup. She smiled gratefully at him and wrapped her hands around it. Jess gave her a small smile back, an almost sad one. He ducked into the kitchen and she wondered just what happened between Luke's nephew and her daughter.

...

Rory reentered her dorm, surprised to see it looked differently than before. Paris walked out of one of the rooms and she almost gasped.

"You're here," Rory pointed out.

"I'm here," Paris said sadly as she went to hug her friend.

"How you holding up?" Rory asked as she returned the hug.

Paris sighed. "I'm fine."

She pulled out of the hug and Rory looked at her non-believing. "Really?"

"Yeah," Paris nodded. "I'm actually glad to be somewhere theyre not fighting over first edition Faulkner's. His granddaughter Sarah is the worst. If she thought the coffin was worth anything, she'd have stuffed it in her purse."

"You know, it's not up to you to do all this," she said.

"I want his memory respected," she told her.

Rory nodded. "And it will be."

"I just can't believe he's gone," she sighed sadly.

"I know," Rory gives her another hug but then noticed something on the table. "What's that?"

"Flyers," Paris said obviously.

"Flyers for what?" She asked as she walked over and picked one up.

"I'm having a wake for Asher," she explained. "So anyone who wants to pay their respects can stop by. I'm also getting more copies of his books so if anyone wants one, they can take it."

"You're having the wake here?" Rory asked.

"Yes," she said. "Read the flyer."

"And it's on the flyer."

"Can you hang some of them up for me?" Paris asked. "I want people to know about the wake."

"I can do that," Rory agreed and Paris shoved a stack of flyers into her hands. "Now?"

"Now would be preferable," she told her.

"I'm on it," she said and walked out the door, hoping that would help her friend.

When Rory exists her dorm, she sees the same group of guys she had encountered earlier with Marty. She makes a face and goes to hang up one of the flyers on the dorm corkboard.

The three boys are having a conversation about one named Finn trying to find a certain dorm room. She shakes her head and continued with the pin she currently tried to spear through the top of the flyer.

They stopped in front of her door and she let go of the pin. "Excuse me, can I help you?"

The blonde from earlier briefly turned. "No, thanks."

"Hey," Rory tried again.

The blonde spoke again but not to her, to his friend. "Don't put your number! Don't put your number."

"That's my room," Rory said.

"Okay, put my number," the blonde said now but with a grin.

One of the darker haired boys stepped forward. "Are you sure this is your room?"

She nodded once. "I'm sure."

"I could have sworn this was her room," the guy said, probably Finn.

"What was her name?" Rory tried. "Maybe I know her."

Finn thought a moment. "It was short."

"Gee, I can see your disappointment, losing a potential soul mate like this," she said. "But this is my room."

The blonde interrupted again. "I'm sorry for the mix-up. My friend here means no harm. We sincerely apologize but now we will leave you to put up your poster of...this really old guy."

"Professor Asher Fleming," Rory said.

"What, they were out of Orlando Bloom?" He grinned.

"He died last week," she said. "We're throwing him a wake."

"Oh," he seemed not sad at this conclusion. "And he was more than a professor...?"

"No!" She said much too strongly. "Well, yes, he was a great writer and an inspiration to many people in ways you couldn't possibly even understand."

"You don't like me," he said. "You don't know me but you don't like me."

"I know you," she said. "Yesterday. With Marty."

"Yes?" He prodded.

"You treated him as a servant," she said.

"Well..."

"What?"

"I hired him," he said. "I paid him. He served. That's what a servant does."

"Are you serious?" Rory was annoyed now. "He was doing a job."

"A job he took willingly," he pointed out.

"Some people have to work," she said.

"And bartenders make great tips," he said. "Especially when around my friends."

"Not the point," she groaned. Where had his friends disappeared to, she wondered.

The conversation veered off, Rory got more annoyed the longer she spoke to this guy. Who the hell did he think he was anyway? He seemed amused by the conversation and not at all frustrated as she was.

Finally, one of his friends returned. "Logan, I think we found it!"

"Tell Marty I said hi," the blonde apparently named Logan told her. "Now tell me that wasn't fun?"

He began to leave and she felt relieved and turned back to the board. She was about to walk away when she heard him say, "Master and the commander."

"The movie?" She asked confusedly.

"That's what I want you to call me from now on," he smiled at her then followed his friends away.

Rory made a face and instead of going to hang up more flyers, she walked back into her dorm to find Paris seated and smoking from a pipe.

"I just wanted to smell like him again," she told her.

She nodded and sat beside Paris, wrapping an arm around her.

...

"I'll be back soon," Jess said into his phone as he paced the upstairs apartment.

"Well, when?" Shane asked.

"A few days?" He suggested. "Week, tops."

"What are you doing about work?" She asked.

"I talked to my boss," he said, only half a lie. He may have fibbed that his mom was more injured than she was.

"And?" She said.

"He told me to take the time I need," he said. "And I'm working at my uncle's diner for now so I'm still making money."

Shane sighed. "And you're really coming back in a few days?"

"Week, tops," he repeated.

"I miss you," she said.

Jess bit his lip, afraid to say the words back even if they were true. He did miss her but he also happened to miss a certain brunette who left for college already.

He didn't know how to do this. He wasn't really a relationship guy. This wasn't even technically a relationship. Sure, they'd had sex and spent a lot of time together but they've never had said the words.

If he was being honest, he'd admit it was because he wanted a relationship with someone else. She didn't seem to want one when he asked so he left and met Shane.

Jess liked Shane. He did. He started this with her to forget Rory but then he learned how he actually did like her. Could he see her as his girlfriend? Sure. Maybe. But he knew he owed it to her no matter what they were or werent to break this off in person.

Finally he realized he was taking too long to reply and cleared his throat. "You, too."

"Is something wrong?" Shane asked, sending his unease but not sure of the reason.

"No," he said possibly too quickly. "But I should get back. Help out."

She agreed. "Right. Okay. You'll call me later?"

"Yeah, I will," he promised. And he would, because it wasn't right to ignore her or break things off this way.

They said their goodbyes and Jess finally sank into the couch. He just hoped when he talked to Shane, really talked, that it wouldn't be too late. He knew what he wanted but he just wish he knew what she still wanted.

He sighed and lifted himself off the seat. Calmly and after shutting his phone off, he headed back down into the diner for the dinner rush.


	21. Day of surprises

**A/N: I sadly have to change that one of my favorite town meetings happened because Luke is still out of town. That means Emily does not come during the wake.**

The wake was not going as planned. So far, all people have assumed the open door to mean was a party. At one point, she even had to usher these guys with a keg out. Now, as the partygoers finally stopped believing it was an excuse to drink, it calmed down.

Students came in to respect Asher and some even talked to Paris about him. Rory sank down on an empty seat and smiled softly at Marty as he found his way to her and sat down, too.

"Long day?" He asked.

Rory nodded her head. "I feel so tired."

"I've heard that comes with losing someone," he told her.

"I'm not sure it's that," she made a face. "I mean, I'm sad about Professor Fleming but there's more to it."

Marty leaned closer. "Like what?"

"There's been so many changes to my life lately," she sighed. "I'm not really sure what's next."

"What kind of changes?" He asked.

Rory inhaled and exhaled. "Just...stuff."

"Right," he nodded.

"There was this guy," she murmured and closed her eyes then shook her head as she reopened them. "You probably don't want to hear about my love life."

"You wouldn't believe the interest I have in the subject," he joked for her.

Rory smiled then sighed. "I just wish relationships were easier. Not even just relationships, you know? Just feelings."

"I know that feeling," he said. "Rory?"

"Hmm?" She murmured, now watching Paris talk to their old suite mate, Tana.

"This guy -" he started. "Is he your boyfriend?"

She shook her head slowly. "No. He, uh, he never really was to begin with."

"Oh," he said.

Rory looked over at Paris now. Paris, who was once scared of most risks took the biggest risk of all. She fell in love with someone unexpected and didn't care how people saw it. She wished she was like that.

Then she got an idea. It was probably a terrible idea and she knew she would gonna regret it later. But she had to do it. "Marty?"

"Yeah?"

"I have to go,"

"What? Where?"

"It doesn't matter," she shook her head. Of course it mattered, to her it did but she didn't want to get into details. "I just have somewhere I have to go."

"Oh...okay," he was obviously confused.

She smiled at him, a sincere smile. "Thanks, Marty."

"For what?" He asked.

Rory shrugged. "Just for listening. Tell Paris I'll be back, okay?"

He barely got his agreement out before Rory was out of her seat and out the door. She grabbed her coat as fast as she could and her keys and was gone. She headed straight to the campus lot and found her car easily.

Rory took a deep breath once she was in the car. She counted to ten slowly and turned the key in the ignition. The car started and she backed up out of her spot and was in drive.

She had no plan at all for what was going to happen. She wasn't even sure what she would even say when she got there. All Rory knew was that she needed to do this. There was a risk she needed to take and if she didn't take it, she'd regret it. Almost as much as she's gonna regret this once it was over.

...

"What'd Johnson say about me today?" Jess asked into his phone.

He was up in the diner apartment again and talking to Caleb. Todd was apparently out and Jess' boss had been asking about him. It seemed he was not too happy with his absence.

"Just that if you don't get back here by tomorrow, he'll fire you," Caleb replied.

"Shit," Jess groaned. "I need that job."

"So get back here and save your ass," he said.

"I can't," he replied. "I'm supposed to be in charge here. I can't just leave."

"You left here," he pointed out.

"There was a family thing," he justified.

"I don't think I've ever heard you use a 'a family thing' as an excuse before," Caleb held in a laugh.

"That's because my family never asked much of me before," he retorted.

"Maybe you just get back," he said in a nicer tone.

Jess rubbed his eyes. "I can't. Look, can you hold him off? Three more days. It's all I need."

"I already asked for more days," Caleb answered. "He's not happy."

He sighed. "Is there anything I can do?"

"He just says be here tomorrow or you're fired," he told him.

Another sigh. "Luke - he's done a lot for me. I can't not do this for him."

"Then I guess your decision is made," he said.

"I guess so," he agreed. "I'm just not sure where to go from there."

Caleb had an idea for him. "What about getting a job there? I'm sure your uncle would let you."

"Maybe," Jess replied. "I don't really wanna stay here, you know? If I get a job here, it's official but it's also a pain in the ass to try to get one in New York."

"So..." He drew out the word. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know," he shook his head. "I don't know. I guess I gotta think pretty quickly huh?"

"Look, if you don't come..." Caleb began. "I'd understand. I know how your mom is and I know how much your uncle helped out. If you choose him, it'd make sense."

"Thanks," he said sincerely and they talked for a few more seconds before eventually hanging up.

Almost as soon as he hit end, the phone rang. At first, Jess thought Caleb was calling back so he didn't even look at the phone before he answered.

"I'm gonna figure it out, you didn't have to call right back," he said.

"Jess?"

"Shane," he said. "Sorry. I thought you were Caleb. I was just talking to him."

"Oh," she said. "What are you trying to figure out?"

"Ive been informed that unless I'm back in New York by tomorrow, I lose my job," he told her.

"So what are you trying to figure out?" She asked.

"What I'm gonna do," Jess almost sighed again.

"Isn't it obvious?" Shane asked. "You're coming back, right?"

"Eventually," he replied.

"Eventually?" She wondered. "Jess. You're just gonna let them fire you?"

"My uncle needs help," he said. "Someone has to be here while he's gone."

"That job is temporary," she said.

"And I hoped the messenger job was, too," he said. "It's not like I planned on being that forever."

"Then what are you gonna do after your uncle comes back?" She said and he imagined her crossing her arms if she was in front of him and not through a phone.

"I don't know," Jess shrugged. "That's what I have to figure out."

Shane sighed. "You can't be serious."

"Look, I appreciate the concern but it's my decision," he told her. He was getting real tired of being told to screw Luke over.

"I know it is," she said. "I just think you should consider coming back."

"Believe me, I am," he admitted and spoke in a calmer tone. "I'm just trying to figure it out, okay?"

"Okay," she said. "Okay."

"Look, I have to go," he said. "There's still customers downstairs and I have some thinking to do."

"Right," she agreed, sounding sad. "Go. Um, we'll talk some other time."

"I'll call you," he said and hung up as she got her goodbye out.

Jess sighed and left his phone on what was considered his side of the apartment. He wasn't going to touch that thing for the rest of the night or so he planned.

He headed downstairs and saw the diner was almost packed. It was still pretty early so he decided to push his dilemma aside and get right to work.

...

Jess heaved a heavy sigh as he closed up the diner for the night. The crowd finally slowed down and after dealing with Kirk and his quirks, with the aid of Lorelai surprisingly enough, he was able to cope.

By now, he had sent Cesar home and was the only one in the diner. It felt nice, quiet. It was almost solitude if his thoughts weren't so overcrowded.

He began to lock up everything he could and cleaned the counters. Jess shut every light in the place and just as he headed to the last light, there was a knock. He sighed, thinking to himself how this person must be stupid. There was a damn closed sign right on the door!

Jess turned around, ready to rip this person a new one. That is, until he saw who it was.

Rory stood at the door, fist ready to knock again. She dropped her hand down when she saw that Jess had seen her. He walked faster than normal to the door and unlocked it.

"Isn't this the day of surprises?" He said to her as he opened the door.

"Can I come in?" She asked, looking very nervous.

"Yeah, sure," Jess moved aside so she could enter then shut the door behind her. "What are you doing here?"

"Paris' boyfriend died," she blurted out.

"Okay," he nodded once, confused. "Tell her I'm sorry?"

Rory shook her head. "Her boyfriend died, Jess. He was old and he was my professor but she loved him. And now he died and she's stuck wondering all these what if's and what could have been's."

"That's understandable," he agreed. He was still confused out of his mind what this had to do with him though.

"I don't want that happen to me," she explained.

"So don't let it," he said.

"I'm not," she swallowed, more nervous. She wouldn't meet his eyes but then she took a deep breath and stared right at him, blue meeting brown. "Jess, I love you."

Jess almost stumbled back. He wasn't sure how to respond or what to do. They told each other the feelings were strong, insinuated love even, but never actually used to L word. And now, as he heard it, he discovered just how much she felt.

"You don't have to say it back or anything," she said to his silence. "But I was sitting there and I was watching Paris and I knew that I had to tell you. No matter what is or isn't going on with us, I had to tell you."

"I love you," she repeated. "I'm in love with you. I don't know exactly when it happened. Maybe it wasn't one moment, maybe it was built from all our conversations. Maybe it's because that first night, you made me feel so special and like we know each other forever. But here it is. I love you."

"Wow," he said.

"I'm sorry to just spring it on you," she said. "I just knew that I couldn't let time pass and I know you're with shane and I respect that. I do. But I also needed you to know."

Jess was still silent. He sat down on one of the stools and just collected his thoughts. Rory was here. Not only was Rory here, she loves him. Actually said the words. He was in a state of shock.

"Say something, please," she pleaded.

"I feel like I'm dreaming," he stated.

Rory frowned slightly. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"I'm not sure yet," he said. "Just give me a minute."

"Okay," she waited and sat down, too. She sat at a table and watched him. When his silence got too long after about ten seconds, she played with her sleeves and held them over her fists. She looked anywhere but at him.

"I...I don't know what to say," he answered honestly.

"Tell me what you're thinking because I'm dying here," she let out an uncomfortable laugh.

"I'm not really sure what I'm thinking," he blew out a breath. "I've thought about hearing that before. That you love me. Just didn't expect it to happen like this."

"How did you expect it to happen then?" She whispered. Rory wasn't even sure if he heard her.

"We would be in New York," Jess answered. "I'd take you to all of my favorite places like Washington Square Park or The Strand. And somewhere in the middle of the tour, I would say it first and I'd say exactly what you said - that you don't have to say it back."

"But I would say it back," she smiled softly, tears shining in her eyes.

"You would say it back," he agreed with a small smile of his own.

"Would you?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah," he said as quiet as she did. "I would."

"Oh," Rory whispered still. She had a question she wanted to ask but at the same time, she didn't want to. But she had to know. "Shane?"

"No," he shook his head.

"Oh," she repeated and wiped at her eyes.

Jess watched her carefully. He didn't like to see her cry and especially not right now. Not while she came all the way from Yale after her friend's boyfriend died to tell him she loves him.

"It's not like that," he breathed out. "Me and her."

"Then what's it like?" She found herself asking.

"I'm not even sure anymore," he answered. "We're...kind of fighting."

"Oh," she said. "Sorry."

Jess shook his head. "You don't have to say that."

"I know," Rory said. "I want you to be happy, Jess."

He's silent, the temptation to say what he wants to say hangs on his tongue. _I can't be happy, not without you._ He may have confessed he'd say those three words back but he wasn't sure if he should take it further.

He watched Rory again, still hating that shine in her eyes from the tears. It wasn't exactly crying, it was a lone, single tear that had fallen in her own confession. She wiped at her eyes again under his gaze. She shifted uncomfortably.

"Rory..." He said and inched to stand up.

"You don't have to say anything," she told him. "I just needed you to know. In case."

"In case what?" He asked and this time he did get up.

"In case I never got the chance," she finished.

Jess kneeled in front of her, at her seat at one of the tables. "Did something happen?"

"No," she said. "I told you. Paris' boyfriend died."

"The professor, right," he said. "The old one."

"Right," she agreed as she remembered the speech she told Paris in the hospital months before. "And age, it doesn't matter. We could live eighty more years or we could die tomorrow."

He felt the corners of his mouth flinch. He wanted to smirk at her. "That's true."

"And just in case we don't have eighty more years, I needed you to know," she said.

Jess wanted to touch her. He reached out and out his hand on hers. Rory stared at his hand on hers and threaded their fingers together. He looked at her, really looked at her and remembered Florida.

He thought through every memory, every conversation, every moment. He smiled at her, a real genuine smile.

Rory smiled back but it quickly faded. She moved her hand from his and stood up, Jess still knelt on the floor. She moved to the counter and out her hand on top of it, palm flat down.

"I don't really know what I expected to happen," she sighed.

Jess stood up and walked by her. "What did you expect then?"

She shrugged one shoulder up and shook her head once. "Nothing, really. I mean, you're still with Shane. Even if it's not that serious, you're still with her."

"I'm not so sure I will be much longer," he confessed.

Rory stared at him blankly, her eyes shined again. "No."

"What?" He said.

"You're not breaking up with her for me," she told him. "I'm not going to be the reason that happens."

"We're not even technically in a relationship," he explained.

"You'll be doing it because of me!" She yelled, surprising herself.

Jess stepped back but stayed still. "It wouldn't be because of you."

"Jess, if I was her, I'd be crushed," she said. "If this guy I was seeing, was sleeping with, suddenly decided one day he was over it - oh my god."

"What?" He was genuinely confused now due to the fact that she was upset and then her expression changed - she laughed.

"That is me!" She laughed again. "It's similar to us, isn't it?"

"No," he disagreed.

She stopped her laughter. "Jess, I didn't come here to expect anything, okay? I didn't come for you to tell me you love me or that you're breaking it off with your whatever she is. I came because I needed you to know. And now you know."

She turned to walk out the door but Jess caught her hand. "Rory, wait."

"What?" She questioned.

"Stay," he said.

"Why?"

"Because."

"I have to go back to school," she told him. "And whether or not it's working with her, I don't think you're a cheater. I hope you're not a cheater."

"Nothing has to happen," he said. "You can visit your mom."

"My mom is probably at home, on the phone with your uncle," she smiled softly.

Rory walked to the door. When her hand covered the doorknob, he called her. "Can I ask one more thing?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"My boss wants me back by tomorrow," he said. "Threatened to fire me if I wasn't back. But I have to stay for Luke. What do you think I should do?"

"Stay," she repeated his word. "It sucks that you'd be fired but it's a good thing you're doing here, looking out for Luke. It shows I'm right about you."

"Right about what about me?" He asked.

She smiled. "All of it."

There was seconds of silence as they stared at each other. He didn't want her to leave, despite that he technically was seeing someone. He just didn't want to see her walk out that door.

"What now?" He asked.

Rory sighed. "Now I go back to Yale. You go back to taking care of the diner then you go back to New York."

"That easy?" He asked.

"No," she said. "Not easy."

"Why don't you at least stay in town?" He asked. "You don't want to drive back at this time."

"It's okay," she said. "The drive back will give me perspective. I did what I came for and now I have to go back."

"Rory -"

"Bye, Jess."

She opened the door and walked out before he had the chance to reply. Jess sank into a seat and watched as she walked to her car and got in. She didn't look back and she drove off in a matter of minutes.

Slowly, Jess stood again and went to lock the door. He shut the lights and then headed upstairs.

 **A/N: This wasn't what I had planned. And I know I'm gonna get some people mad, I'm sorry. I have a scene in my head, a scene you will really like, trust me, but it's not time for it yet. I messed up on some plans, not the way you'd think but I did some stuff earlier than originally planned and I want the timeline to fit a certain way.**

 **So this scene, the confession, it seems like the perfect way to put them together. I was thinking about doing it anyway and screw the plans I want to keep still. But I wanted to keep something and I thought it was a beautiful scene despite it not being planned at all. It just took me there. I don't want to disappoint anyone and I know some will be but as always, remember the things I do in my fics are for a reason and it will be worth it.**

 **I just hope you don't see this scene, think it's way out there or get too mad at me for wasting this opportunity to put them together. They will be together, it's a literati fic after all. But I know exactly when I want that happen and again, I say, it will be worth it. I just hope you stick with me.**


	22. Two sets of fates

**A/N: This chapter skips ahead a few weeks. This chapter goes along the timeline of The Party's over, 5x09. Rory has been investigating The Life and Death Brigade just as in the show and her and Logan have been spending time together. They've even done the jump on 5x08. Jess has gone back to New York as Luke returned the three days later. I think that's the setup you need, anything else will be in the chapters.**

Rory and Lorelai let out a sigh of relief as they left the Gilmore mansion. To say the evening had been uninteresting would be a vast understatement. Richard has served appetizers with the drinks which led to Emily rushing in with a fit. They ate as much as they could without making her suspicious of their fullness.

"Grandma's mean," Rory remarked.

"If it ate, flew, swam, we ate it," Lorelai nodded in agreement.

"I can't breathe," Rory said. "Why did we eat so much?"

"Because my mother catches on quickly if the two of us don't," she sighed.

They walked to the Jeep and climbed in. Rory leaned her head back on the seat and closed her eyes as her mother started the car.

"What are you thinking?" Lorelai asked her daughter as she pulled out onto the road from the driveway.

"That she had a mischievous look in her eye when I mentioned knowing Logan Huntzberger," she answered.

"Right," she made a face. "She looked like she was formulating a plan."

"More like a marriage," Rory scoffed.

"Well, since you said it..." Lorelai teased but she saw the expression on her daughter's face and her smile faded. "What is it?"

Rory sighed. "Do you think I'm lonely? Does everyone think I'm lonely? Am I some kind of desperate person that people take pity on?"

"Sweetie, no," she shook her head. "What brought that on?"

"As soon as I mention a guy, she jumped on it," she said.

"Only because it's a Huntzberger which apparently means something," Lorelai said.

"They're in Grandma's circle," she used air quotes when she said circle. "And Logan's dad owns a bunch of newspaper. He's very well respected in the business."

"Uh-huh," she nodded. "What's going on between the two of you?"

"What do you mean?" She asked.

Lorelai pointed a finger toward her daughter and waved it around in a circle as if to mean her. "The way you're talking about him. What's going on there?"

"Me and Logan?" Rory scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest. "We're barely even acquaintances, especially not friends then."

"Uh-huh," she repeated. "Do you like him?"

"No, you know there's only one person I -" she sank into her seat as she shook her head. "That's over, anyway."

Lorelai nodded in understanding. "So...it's still Jess?"

She looked quickly over at her then back out the window. "I can't seem to push aside how I feel about him."

"Well, hun, that's understandable," she said as she looked over at her then back to the road. "You cared about him."

"I haven't talked to him since -" she swallowed hard, remembering the night in the diner, after Asher's memorial at the dorm. "In a couple of months."

"Not at all?"

"He called me," she said. "I didn't answer."

"Well, why not?" She said.

"Because he has a girlfriend!" She uncrossed her arms and slammed her hands down in frustration onto her lap. "It doesn't matter they didn't label it. He's seeing someone."

Lorelai was quiet, not sure what to say. She watched her daughter anguish over this boy. She couldn't help the sadness that swept over her. "Did he leave a message?"

"No," she said. "And he shouldn't. Because he has a girlfriend and he doesn't need to call me and tell me how awkward it is that I told him I love him. I already know it's awkward."

"Wait, what?"

"It was stupid," Rory ranted. "I felt this urge to tell him how I felt and I shouldn't have because he's moved on. And now I made it awkward and he felt obligated to talk to me after when really, he shouldn't have to do that either."

"Hold on," Lorelai shook her head. "You told Jess you love him?"

"Right," she laughed humorlessly. "I didn't tell you about that."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because he had the right to know, I guess," she replied.

"No," another shake of her head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Rory looked over at her mother and for the briefest second, she saw hurt. Hurt that she didn't confide in her, again, and about Jess, again. "I guess I was embarrassed."

"Oh, hun," she said sadly. "You never have to embarrassed with me. You know that."

"It wasn't just about you," she told her. "I told him he didn't have to say anything. And he told me he'd break it off with her and I'm not that girl. I'm not going to be the reason a couple breaks up."

"Hun..." She said with another brief look over at Rory then to the road ahead. "Maybe it was his way of telling you he loves you, too. He wanted to break up with this girl for you. There's a reason."

"I don't know why," she said. "We don't work. It doesn't matter how we feel."

"It's not always like that," Lorelai told her.  
"Look at Grandma and Grandpa!" Rory exclaimed. "Over 35 years together and now he's living in the pool house. What's the point anyway?"

"There's always a point to loving someone," she said.

"Really?" She scoffed. "You and dad? Max? What about me and dean?"

"Those are different," Lorelai tried to explain. "We weren't meant to be with them."

"And you're saying I'm meant to be with Jess?" Her eyebrows rose in question.

"I don't know if you are or you aren't," she answered. "But I do know you don't know until you try."

"I'm not sure what's left to try," she said sadly.

Rory crossed her arms once again and resumed her position from earlier, leaning her head back in the seat. Lorelai said nothing, her heart ached for her daughter. She didn't like to see her so hopeless. She wasn't sure what to say so they drove back to Stars Hollow in silence, no sounds but the radio playing faintly in the background.

...

Jess sighed as he shrugged off his jacket inside of his apartment. Neither Caleb or Todd was home and he knew if they had been, there would be screaming of some sort. Ever since he had come back from Stars Hollow and lost his job, they'd be even more strapped for money. Jess had already looked for jobs and it seemed none were hiring, at least not hiring him.

A part of him itched to ask his uncle for a job. But that would mean a return to Stars Hollow, which he wasn't sure he wanted to do. As soon as Luke had came back from helping Liz, Jess had hightailed it out of that crazy town and not without a few backwards glances by select townspeople.

That was another thing. When he first arrived, the only person who seemed to have a problem with him was the same man who had a problem with his uncle. But this was different. People had seemed to accept him but then as sudden as his arrival, it shifted. It made Jess wonder if the great townspeople of the Connecticut town knew of him and Rory.

Rory wouldn't tell everyone, would she? He had a feeling people there learned of things whether you wanted them to know or not though. But how? It wasn't until after her visit to the diner late the last night he saw her that the looks began. Maybe someone had seen them. Wondered why she went to see him and not her mother.

Jess reached into his jeans pocket and shook the box of cigarettes. Almost empty. He'd need a new pack but without a job that could be hard. He lit it up anyway and put the stick between his lips. It felt like a release.

Why was he so worried what some weird small town thought of him anyway? Or if they knew about him and Rory? He and Rory were the past, she made that clear when she didn't give any response to his phone call. He didn't even want to think of that. The whole thing was embarrassing now when he did think of it.

Another drag of his cigarette and he blew out smoke towards the apartment window. He didn't care he was inside. He didn't care he was alone. He didn't care Rory didn't call him back.

Maybe the last one had been a lie.

Finally, when the cigarette was down to almost nothing, Jess couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed his jacket right back up where he left and headed out the door. He wasn't entirely sure where he was going but he had to go somewhere. Somewhere that wasn't wallowing in self-pity about how he was out of a job or the girl he loved didn't want to be with him. Even if she had told him she herself had loved him.

Jess walked down the building steps and out the front door. He breathed in the fresh New York air, as fresh as was possible in his location. It took him a moment to realize he forgot his phone but he didn't care. Who would call anyway? Who would he need to call?

He traveled down the block by foot, thankful he at least had his wallet with him. He was actually starving and he pulled out the small leather square and looked inside. There wasn't much inside it and he let out another sigh. He really needed to find a job and soon.

Before he even realized it, he had been headed to Washington Square Park. It was a perk of Lower Manhattan to be so near. The not so perk of course was the cost. It always seemed to come back to money it seemed. And Rory. It always came back to Rory too.

Jess sat down on an empty bench and reached into his back pocket for the book he had stuffed there earlier. He couldn't even remember what book it was and the words blurred together. They had no meaning or definition. He sighed, leaned his back against the back if the bench.

He needed to make a change.

…..

Rory shuffled out of the Yale Daily News room hurriedly. She put on her jacket and followed the crowd out into the hallway. She could almost feel someone watching her so she sped up. She wasn't really in the mood to talk to anyone right now. All she hoped for a cup of coffee and to get back to her dorm.

"Gilmore," a familiar voice said.

Rory turned, she guessed she didn't mind that voice too much. "Hey, Logan."

"Where are you headed right now?" He asked her.

"Getting some coffee," she admitted. "Why?"

"I have a proposition for you," he said.

"A proposition?" Her eyebrows rose and she crossed her arms. They now stood facing each other in the crowd of hurrying students.

"A proposition," he smiled.

"The Life and Death Brigade?" She asked, remembering their last meeting.

"Maybe," he said evasively. "You'll have to come and see, right?"

Rory bit her lip in hesitation. It didn't go unnoticed the way he watched her do so. "What is it?"

"It's a surprise," Logan teased.

Rory wasn't sure. She let out a small sigh. "I was going to study."

"Study later," he shrugged.

"You're really not going to tell me what it is?" she asked.

Logan laughed. "No. That's the point of a surprise now, isn't it?"

She considered it for a moment. She was intrigued to find out what he was up to, therefore giving her her answer. "Okay. Just let me bring my stuff back to my dorm first."

"Lead the way," he said and put his head out as if to say 'ladies, first.'

Rory walked ahead of Logan, feeling his eyes on her back. She knew of his reputation. She wasn't stupid. Though she also knew there was no way he'd ever be interested in her. It was all work with the two of them and she was glad for it. She didn't even want to think about boys right now.

They reached her dorm's door and she unlocked it. Logan stood awkwardly outside the door and she turned around, surprised that he waited. "You can come in. I'll just be a minute."

"All right," he stepped inside and began looking around the room.

Rory closed her 'bedroom' door behind her with an exhale. It felt like she was holding a breath she didn't know she took. Slowly she put all her paperback and books down on her desk. She wasn't really sure what he had wanted to do but she had the sneaking suspicion it didn't have to do with his elite group.

But then again, when it came to boys, she had been wrong before.

There was a murmering of voices outside the room. Rory silently cursed to herself, knowing just who was now out there with Logan. Hopefully she wouldn't cause too much trouble but then again it was Paris Gellar after all.

Rory opened the door and just as predicted, there stood Paris who had her arms crossed as she looked at Logan. "I don't care who your father is, Huntzberger."

"I didn't say you had to," he commented back. "In fact, I don't care who my father is, either."

"Well, I'm not going to swayed to follow you like a puppy as the rest of the school population does," she countered.

"Paris," Rory said, feeling as if her friend clumped herself into her latest comment.

"What's he doing here?" She turned to her roommate.

"I was waiting for Rory," Logan said.

"Did I ask you?" She asked him with a quick swift of her head then turned back to Rory.

"He really was waiting for me," she replied.

Paris shifted his look between the two of them. "He's not stealing our valuables?"

Logan chuckled. "I didn't have enough time to find your safe in the wall, sorry."

Paris glared at him and Rory interjected. "I'll be back, okay?"

Logan began to lead the way out the door when Paris grabbed her friend's arm and stopped her. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" She asked.

"Him," she nodded towards his direction. "Huntzberger."

"I'm not _doing_ him," she half-hissed. "We're friends. Sort of. Maybe."

Paris huffed. "He has a bad reputation."

"I'm well aware," she told her.

"Then why?" She asked then it clicked. "Mariano, isn't it? You're hoping whatever with Huntzberger will get you over him, don't you?"

"No," she shifted uncomfortably. "Because first of all, I am over Jess. And second, nothing is happening with me and Logan."

"Right," she nodded. "And why did you go on a sleepover with him last week then?"

"It wasn't a sleepover."

"You were out all night."

"Still wasn't a sleepover."

"Seemed like a sleepover."

"Paris, he's waiting," she sighed.

"You're really not doing this because you told Mariano you love him and never saw him again?" She questioned.

Rory didn't meet her eyes, almost regretting confiding in her. "No."

"Uh-huh," she nodded, not believing.

"It's not," she insisted. "Me and Jess...it wouldn't work. Did I love him? Yes. Did I tell him? Yes. But it doesn't matter because he doesn't love me back."

"How do you know he doesn't?" She asked.

"Paris," she sighed.

"What?" She wondered. "He was the only boyfriend of yours I could stand, Huntzberger included."

"Logan is not my boyfriend," she said. "And neither was Jess, by the way."

"Fine, only one of the guys you were attracted to I could stand," she corrected.

"I have to go," Rory said without a comment back.

"It's your funeral," Paris shouted after her.

Rory didn't reply but instead walked out into the hall where Logan patiently waited. "Sorry about that. Paris was just being...Paris."

Logan nodded understandably. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah, let's go," she smiled.

…...

The next day involved a very suspicious phone call. Rory answered it reluctantly but was happily surprised to hear her grandmother on the other end. Emily told her about a special party this Friday at her house, one that would not include their usual dinner.

When Rory told Lorelai about this, she happily said she was sorry to hear no dinner. It was much too obvious that she was not really sorry. After Rory had explained to her that she did not need to attend but she, herself, had to, Lorelai told her she really was sorry.

As Rory contemplated what that Friday will hold, she worried. What could her grandmother possibly have in mind that did not involve her mother? Usually whenever she had a party, she used it to her advantage. Maybe her advantage meant something different this time.

Rory sighed and looked at the clock. It was almost time for her to head down to the Daily News office. Her mind had been so filled with worry over what extravagant plans Emily Gilmore has planned that she'd almost forgotten. She grabbed her jacket and anything she could remember needing - her brain really was a scattered mess with wonder - and was on her way.

On her way to the offices, she again found herself in the company of Logan Huntzberger. "Hey, Ace."

"Logan," she greeted. She didn't have time for his games right now, she was gonna be late.

"So this party…" he mused.

Rory's head swiveled to face him. "You know about the party? Or is it a different party?"

"If the one you mean is your grandmother's, then it should be the same party," he replied.

Rory sighed. "Do you know what this party is? She won't tell me a thing besides my mom can't come."

Logan shrugged. "I haven't got a clue. But isn't that part of what makes life fun? The chances."

"Logan," she let out another sigh. "If you're gonna give me another speech about how I don't take risks and a life unlived is a life not worth living…"

"I wasn't gonna say that," he told her.

"Then what?" She asked. "I have somewhere to be."

"So do I," he grinned.

She rolled her eyes. "Why do I doubt you were heading to the newspaper?"

"Because I haven't proven to you that you can trust me," he said. "But I will."

"How?" She eyed him suspiciously.

"You'll see, Ace," his smile sparkled as he stared at her. Rory had to look away. "But about this party."

"You don't have to come," she quickly told him.

"I want to come," he explained. "See the inclusive Gilmore home, be there for a party. And there's only the best part of this idea, too."

"What's that?"

"I get to be in the company of you," he answered.

Rory looked away again and finally moved her eyes back to him to reply. "I have to go."

"Okay," he nodded.

"Bye, Logan," she said. "Or you know, later."

Logan laughed. "See you around, Ace."

She didn't say anything back but instead followed on her path to the Yale Daily News. Now she was worried more than ever about this mysterious party on Friday night.

….

"You're asking me for a job?"

Luke's voice sounded beyond surprised. He hadn't been expecting that when Jess had called. He'd expected some kind of an update on New York but not a job offer. Jess sensed his surprise and sighed almost in regret. "Yes."

"Wow," Like replied through the phone. "So you would travel for work or you'd - would you actually move here?"

"Maybe," Jess shrugged, as he stared at the cigarette he twirled between his fingers. "If I have to."

Luke laughed now. "I'm picturing Taylor's face when I tell him. Oh, is it a joy."

"Look, can you help me or not?" Jess grew impatient as his future waited on his uncle. It felt like his whole had weighed on his uncle as a matter of fact.

"I can help you," he said. "On one condition."

He sighed and ruffled the cigarette holding hand through his hair, thankful it wasn't lit. "What's that?"

"You stay away from Rory," he warned. "It's bad enough I know what happened between the two of you. I don't want to think of it happening again."

"That won't be a problem," he said. "She hates my guts so...I don't think we'll be having sex again soon."

"Do you have to say that word?" He exclaimed.

"If you're old enough to be doing it, you should be able to say it," Jess quoted - and would also deny that he knew the show well enough to quote - Buffy, the vampire slayer.

He could tell he hit a nerve in his uncle. "I'm not talking about me doing it - I'm talking about you. And Rory. Geez. I don't want to talk about that."

Jess smirked to himself. "You brought it up, Uncle Luke."

"I did not," he defended. "Look, just stay away from her, Jess. She's obviously hurt over whatever happened between the two of you so just...let it go. Let her be."

He was silent a moment. He didn't know she was hurt over him. What did she have to be hurt over? She wasn't the one who left that message and didn't answer back. Yes, she had told him she loved him but he didn't see past that.

"All right," he finally replied. "It's not like I'll see her that often other than when she visits and if she comes in the diner."

"Good, good," he agreed.

Jess stayed quiet on why was it so important he stay away anyway? She didn't care anymore about whether he was in her life or not so his moving shouldn't affect anything. Not while she lived at Yale.

"Thanks, Uncle Luke," he said genuinely. "For the job. Everything."

"No problem," and he heard the smile in the older man's voice.

They said their goodbyes and immediately Jess began to plan for his departure.

 **A/N: sorry this is later than usual! I didn't plan on that. I was super busy this weekend and had some things I needed to take care but I did manage to get writing in. I hope better late than never applies here :)**

 **Also thank you, as always, for your reviews and reads. The response to the last chapter was amazing and I'm so glad that no one actually got mad at me over it lol I just hope you give this chapter the same kind of response even if there's hints toward Rory/Logan in here. Just always keep in mind, sort of following canon but with my own twists and as always, this is a Literati fic. I hope you like it.**


	23. The Party

**A/N: A bunch of people are probably going to hate this chapter. For that, I say sorry in advance. I have a plan - and the scene set in mind for Literati after - that I really want to keep. It sounds selfish but it's my story and I know exactly what the payoff scene is like. To change my plan is to change that scene completely and I really love that scene the way it is in my head. I'm not quite ready to part with that and to never share that scene with you guys either. So here we go.**

Rory arrived at the Gilmore mansion at about six pm. She dressed a little fancier than she would for Friday Night Dinner and grabbed her keys from the ignition. Her shoes clacked as she walked up the drive and to the front door. With a deep breath, she rang the doorbell and braced herself for her grandmother's plans.

She was glad for one thing though - her grandparents were throwing this party together. Through all their arguments and the separation, they'd never done something remotely positive together. Maybe this was a sign of something. Rory just hoped it was a sign for them and not her.

The door opened and a maid did not answer the door. Instead it was Emily herself who gasped with happiness as she saw her granddaughter before her. "Rory! Welcome. Come on in."

"Hi, grandma," she smiled as she entered.

Rory took her coat off and Emily called the maid over. Just as the maid disappeared, the two greeted each other properly with a hug. "I'm so glad you're here!"

"I told you I would come, didn't I?" She said still with a smile.

"You did," she beamed. "I worried your mother would convince you otherwise, though."

"Mom was very good about it," she nodded.

"Good," Emily couldn't stop smiling. "My, you look marvelous."

"Oh," Rory looked down at her black dress, not seeing anything special about how she looked. "Thank you."

Emily wrapped an arm around her and began walking her towards the living room area where they'd usually have drinks. Rory took a good look around and noticed the different decorations that were up.

"What's this party for anyway?" She asked curiously. "Because mom could have come. Unless it's something she really wouldn't want to do."

"It's for Yale alumnus," she replied.

"Oh," Rory said surprised. Now the decorations made sense. "That explains all the blue."

"It is quite blue, isn't it?" She perked up. "Matches your eyes, too, doesn't it?"

"Right," she agreed, wondering what her eye color had to do with the party.

Emily faced her and frowned. "Oh, Rory, darling. Is that the way you're going to wear your hair tonight?"

Rory touched the ends of her hair with her fingertips. She liked it down. "I was."

"I have a hairdresser upstairs," she suggested so casually. "Why don't you go on up and see what they can do for you?"

"Um, okay," she agreed against her better judgement.

Emily walked beside Rory, her hand on her back and guided her to the stairs. She nudged her forward to climb the stairs and let Rory take her own lead once she got up the first two steps.

Rory looked back down as she got higher up. She saw her grandmother had now begun to talk to a caterer and was instructing where they can set up, she assumed. With a steady breath, she climbed the rest of the way up the stairs.

…..

Jess walked into the diner and was surprised to not see his uncle around. Usually he worked hardest on Fridays because Lorelai went to Hartford for dinner with her parents. He shrugged to himself and figured maybe he just didn't see him because he was in the store room or somewhere like that.

His shift was back on in a few minutes and before his break ended, he wanted to put his cigarettes upstairs. He climbed the stairs two at a time and when he opened the door, he found where his uncle was.

"Sorry," Jess said to Luke and Lorelai who sat at the small table in the apartment. "Didn't know anyone was up here. Lorelai."

"Hi, Jess," she gave her best attempt at a smile.

"I'm just gonna drop these off," he showed them his carton and headed for his side of the room.

"Jess, you know, you really shouldn't smoke," Luke said.

"I've heard that before," he told him. "By you."

Luke seemed bashful. "I'm just looking out for you."

"I know," he nodded then he sniffed. "That smells good."

"It's artichoke and lamb stew," Lorelai said.

"Lamb and artichoke stew," Luke corrected and his girlfriend grinned as at his tone.

"And a whole bunch of other stuff," she said happily as she put more food on her fork.

"Nice," he said appreciably. He really was hungry. "I gotta head back down. Break's almost over."

"Why don't you sit for a little bit?" Luke suggested. "Eat."

"I have work -"

"And I'm your boss," he pointed out.

"I don't wanna intrude on your date," he said.

"You won't be," Lorelai said. "Sit."

Jess was conflicted at first but sat down anyway. Luke grabbed him a dish and some food which he graciously accepted. He was glad they hadn't hear his stomach growl. "Thanks."

"So…" Lorelai attempted. "How have you been, Jess?"

"I'm all right," he shrugged as he dug into his food. It was delicious. "Uncle Luke is a big help."

"He is the perfect man," she smiled.

"Don't start that again," Luke half-blushed.

"I bet it's a weird adjustment, right?" She asked. "New York City to Stars Hollow. I mean, Hartford to Stars Hollow was even weird at first."

Jess shrugged. "S not so bad. I mean, people here are crazy -"

"Me, included," Lorelai cut in.

Jess didn't comment and continued. "But I don't know, I guess it depends on what kind of place you like. A place that is like a family isn't so bad."

Lorelai nodded in agreement and Luke stared at him in surprise. Jess noticed this and asked what. Luke shook his head once. "Just never expected to hear you say that."

"I didn't say they're like my family," he ate more of his food. He looked up when he said this and noticed the look on Lorelai's face. Her expression quickly became unreadable and he pushed aside any wonderment. Instead, he cleared his throat. "Speaking of...how's Liz?"

"She's doing good," Luke told his nephew. "She actually is going back to the Faire route this week."

"Oh that's great," Lorelai said happily and looked over at Jess again. "Isn't that great?"

"It's great," he agreed. "I'm glad she's better. Really. We may not have the best relationship but it doesn't mean I want her injured."

"Hmm," Lorelai said as she went back to her own food. "You sound a little like me. I can see why Rory likes you."

As soon as the sentence was out of her mouth, she looked up at the two Danes men before her. Luke watched Jess for a reaction. Jess didn't exactly react. He finished what he could from his dish and stood up. "I'm gonna go back to work."

"Jess -"

"Don't worry, Uncle Luke," he gave his best reassuring smirk. "I'll close up at the right time."

He walked right to the door and once he was gone, Luke looked over at his girlfriend. "I really stuck my foot in my mouth, didn't I?"

"Little bit," he answered then smiled. "But when doesn't Lorelai Gilmore after all?"

He stood up with his own dish as Lorelai caught onto what he said. "Hey!"

…..

Rory crossed her arms bored. She didn't want to be at this party any longer. A part of her wished she had planned ahead just in case and arranged someone to pick her up. She realized her grandmother's real intention after the fifth - or was it the fourth? She can't remember - future yale male graduate she met.

Emily Gilmore was setting her up.

She had placed diamonds on her - tiara, necklace, bracelet - you name it. She had done her makeup and had a hair stylist give her an updo. Emily had prettied Rory up so much just to parade around the boys from yale that she had never met before tonight. She felt sick. She just wanted to hide in her grandfather's office until the party was over.

She made her way to the office as planned and sat down in Richard Gilmore's chair. It felt comfortable, more comfortable than this party had been. She picked up the phone and dialed her home phone but there was no answer. Cursing herself for not thinking of it sooner, she called her mother's cell phone.

"I told you," was her greeting.

"Told me what?" Rory asked.

"Whatever has happened at that party you got rooked into tonight," she replied. "I told you."

Rory squinted her eyes suspiciously even though she was alone. "Do you want to hear or do you just want to gloat?"

"I can multi-task," Lorelai said.

"I got here and Grandma immediately whisked me away to where her hairdresser and makeup artist plan to make a new me," she explained.

"Cause the old you was so last season," Lorelai added.

"Then I come downstairs," Rory went on. "Where, guess what? All these yale alumni and their sons are!"

Lorelai was quick to respond with a simple, "what?"

"All boys and me!" She shouted as best as she could. "No girls!"

"You're kidding," she gasped.

"I feel like I'm being auctioned off," she groaned.

"What do you need?" Lorelai asked.

"A way out," she said. "I don't wanna be rude to grandma and grandpa but this is -"

"Too much?" Rory nodded.

"I'm gonna try to suck it up for them a little bit longer," she said. "Then I'm gonna come home and we are going to binge watch some bad tv so I can't forget all about this."

"You got it," she said. "Do you want to know all the escape routes?"

There was a knock on the door and Rory whispered to her mom that she had to go. After quick pleading to tell her about trees and closets, they hung up just as Emily snuck her head into the office. "There you are. I have someone I'd like you to meet."

Rory put on her best smile and followed her grandmother out of the room. She led her to another boy who looked just like countless others she had met tonight. Emily smiled brightly as she gestured between them.

"Rory, this is Jordan Chase," she said. "Jordan, meet my granddaughter, Rory."

"Nice to meet you," Jordan said.

"You, too," she replied.

Emily seemed pleased. "Talk. I think you'll really like each other."

She walked away with one more look back at the two of them. Jordan smiled brightly too, as if Emily had talked her up before she got there. "So...I hear we're meant to be."

Oh, yeah. She definitely talked her up. "Really?"

"And there's nothing like having your family play matchmaker, right?" He grinned.

Rory crossed her arms again for the second time in ten minutes. "Oh, yeah. Definitely."

"Do you want a drink?" He asked.

She was just about to answer when she heard a familiar voice call out. "Rory."

"Who's that?" Jordan asked.

"Logan Huntzberger," he said as he reached them and put his arm around Rory. "Hey, I was looking for you. I'm sorry I'm late."

"You're just in time," she played along in relief.

"And who are you?" Logan asked.

"Jordan Chase -"

"Thanks for keeping my girl busy while I was away," he told him.

Jordan was stunned. "Your girl? But I thought -"

"We're together," Rory joined in.

"Going on a year and a half," Logan added.

"Oh," Jordan said then shook his head. "What am I even doing here?"

He walked away with another shake of his head in disbelief. Rory unwrapped Logan's arm around her and turned to face him. "Thank you so much."

"You looked like you needed a rescue," he explained.

"I did," she agreed. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he smiled at her.

They stood there like that, quiet but stares on each other for a few extra seconds. Rory cleared her throat. "I hadn't seen you yet tonight. Where were you?"

"I was with Colin and Finn," he told her.

"Colin and Finn are here too?" She wondered. Just how many people and their sons did her grandparents invite?

"We were out in the pool house," he nodded in its direction. "But now they should be strolling around. Ran into your grandfather."

She seemed surprised at that. "You know my grandpa?"

"Of course," Logan said as if it was obvious. "My parents know your family, Rory."

"Oh," she said.

"Man, I hate these kind of parties," Logan said.

"Me too," Rory agreed. "Especially when my grandparents throw it in honor of getting me a boyfriend."

"What?" Logan almost choked even though he wasn't eating or drinking.

"Yep," she answered. "They think I'm lonely and that I need a boyfriend. And of course, who better for a Gilmore to date than a socket baby?"

"Ouch," he held a hand over his heart. "As a society baby myself, my feelings are hurt."

"Poor baby," she said. "Did growing up with money scar you?"

"Yes, it did," Logan said. "Have you met my father?"

"No."

"Lucky."

"Logan -"

"They really did this to get you a date?" He asked.

"Probably more secure me a husband than a date," she scoffed.

"You know what you need?" He asked. "A drink. Come on."

He grabbed her hand and they headed towards where the wine was being served. She grabbed the whole bottle as instructed and they slipped away from the party.

…

Jess wiped down the counter as Lane walked around and gave customers their food. They had eased into a sort of civility. They weren't exactly friends but they weren't enemies. She seemed frustrated about something so when she came back to behind the counter, he tried to start a conversation.

"What happened?" He asked.

"What do you mean what happened?" Lane asked.

"Something's bothering you," he pointed out.

"Maybe something is," she shrugged. "Why do you care?"

"Because I like to think we don't hate each other," he said.

Lane sighed and looked around at the customers then back to Jess. "My mom yelled at my boyfriend. Out in the street. Publicly. Over a hug."

Jess resisted a laugh. Honestly, he knew he'd have been terrified about this having finally met the scary Mrs. Kim. "What happened?"

"There's this girl staying in my house - my old house," she corrected. "And she told my mom about the two of us hugging. Which isn't even a big deal. I've hugged Zach before he was even my boyfriend."

"But it's a big deal to your mom," he connected.

"Huge," Lane nodded. "And she went and screamed at him in front of all the magazines and it scared him because have you met my mom?"

Jess nodded. "Scarily enough, yes."

"So you know," she said. "And what gave her the right? I mean, she kicked me out. I had to find a new home and I've known Zach for a while now. It progressed and she doesn't even want to know him."

"Maybe she does," he told her. "Maybe this is her way of saying she cares about you. That her worrying about your boyfriend with you means something more than just terrifying the shit out of who you're dating."

"I know," she groaned. "I know she cares. That's the thing. Shouldn't she have lost that right when she kicked me out? To care what I do with my life?"

"No," Jess disagreed.

"Really?" She scrunched her face.

"I'm not the best person for advice on parents," he explained. "But I have an uncle. I don't know where I'd be without him and if he kicked me out...well I'd be pissed."

Lane laughed. "Understandably."

Jess smirked briefly along then continued. "But it wouldn't be because he doesn't care. And he would still care even after and I know eventually I'd get over with because some things are just more important, you know?"

"Like what?"

"Family."

Lane smiled at him again. "Thanks, Jess."

He shrugged. "It's nothing."

Before Lane could tell him it was something, a customer called her over and she gave him another smile before she returned to work.

….

Rory sat on the couch in the pool house, now empty of both Colin and Finn and anyone else. "Relationships are stupid."

"Too much work," Logan agreed.

"Expectations," she said and grabbed the bottle from his hand. "Feelings."

"Unnecessary," he said.

"Totally!" She almost shouted. "Who needs them?"

"I don't," he answered her.

"Me either," she replied.

Logan took the bottle back from her. "That's exactly why I don't do relationships. Way too messy."

"They are!" Rory exclaimed but went on in a lower tone. "I mean, either you're in one and you get disappointed or you want one with someone and you get disappointed."

"That's a whole lot of disappointment," he said.

"Unnecessary disappointment," she nodded.

"The whole things a scam," he said. "I mean, if two people are attracted to each other, why does it have to mean love? Why can't it just be an attraction?"

"And even when you have an attraction, why does it feel like love?" She questioned. Knowing how serious she sounded, she took the bottle again and took a long sip.

"We need you to let you loose, Ace," he said. "Have some fun."

"I'm having fun now."

"Really?"

"Really."

Logan watched her curiously as she leaned forward and kissed him. He kissed her back but broke apart first. "Rory."

"You used my name," she pointed out.

"I had to get your attention somehow," he replied.

Rory smiled. "Yeah?"

"I'm serious," he said. "I really don't do relationships. They're messy and they never end well."

"I know," she said. "That's exactly why I'm doing this."

He looked at her questionably. "What?"

"I don't want a relationship, either," she kissed him again and this time he didn't object.

 **A/N: Don't hate me don't hate me don't hate me. Again, reasons for all of it, keep that in mind. Also I really love my Lane/Jess scene here. I thought it was a nice opportunity to think about how they were both kicked out by their parent/parental guardian.**

 **And this is late. I'm sorry. I'm gonna try to have another chapter up by Sunday just in reward for this.**

 **One more thing...if you're not watching Milo's new show, This is us, start it! I'm obsessed with it and it's so good. Definitely worth a shot! :)**


	24. After the party

**A/N: I'm so glad you guys are my reviewers and readers, that is all :)**

The second was different. Rory expected something else. She wasn't entirely sure what she expected. It was weird, to have shared this with someone else. For months, in all of her twenty years, it had only been one person. But now it was two. A second person.

She looked over at Logan as he dressed. He was concentrated on his shoes and getting them on. The high of the alcohol and of the post-coital afterglow making him drunk. She slid her dress straps onto her slim shoulders, making sure she had put on her dress the right way. If she walked out with it on backwards, it may be embarrassing.

"Logan?" She called to him.

He looked over at her quickly, sitting up from his bent over position. "Yeah?"

"A little help?" She pointed to the back of her dress.

"Yeah, sure," he agreed and walked over to Rory as she stood.

Logan expertly zipped her dress back up, her strapless bra once again hidden by the fabric. When it was finished, he leaned down and kissed her almost bare shoulders softly. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied just as feather light as she had.

"We should go back to the party," she said as she now slipped into her shoes and put the tiara back on. Her hair was a loss, curls cascaded down now but no longer in the updo Emily Gilmore had approved of.

"You think they missed us?" he grinned and moved out from behind her.

"You? I don't know," she said. "They probably missed me because I'm the only girl."

"Someone needs to tell them the only girl of the night was in the pool house with one of the rich boys doing very improper things," he still grinned.

Rory hid her face in a blush but laughed for her next words. "How do I look? Like I did before? My dress isn't on backwards?"

"All ready," he said. "Your hair though -"

"I'll just tell my grandma I got a headache from the pins and took it down ," she said.

Logan didn't say anything but he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled Rory close to him. "This was fun."

"It was," she agreed with a smile.

"Maybe we can recreate it sometime?" He asked. "Preferably not on your grandparent's property although that is pretty taboo."

Rory laughed. "Let me worry about the party ending first, all right?"

"All right," he nodded with the grin still in place. He unwrapped his arm around her and kissed her quickly. "Who goes out first?"

"I'll go," she said. "Make an appearance."

"I'll see you soon then," Logan joked.

Rory smiled at him and began to walk to the door before she turned around. "Hey, um this might be completely crazy but do you think...maybe…"

"What do you need?" He asked.

She sighed apologetically. "A ride home? I took a cab here stupidly because I didn't want to use my car and I-"

"Say no more," he held his hands up. "I got you covered."

"Thanks," she said as she finally made her way out the pool house door.

As soon as Rory was back in the party, her grandmother rushed to her. "Rory! Where have you been? Why is your hair like that?"

"Sorry, Grandma," she replied. "I think I needed a break. The party, all these people…"

"Yes, it is quite a lot, isn't it?" She looked around. "Are you all right now?"

"Yes," she nodded once.

Emily looked relieved but then she frowned. "That still doesn't explain your hair."

…..

The last customer of the night walked out the door of the diner. Jess closed the door behind them and switched the sign to show they were closed. Lane stood by the storage room and buttoned up her jacket so he walked towards her.

"You feeling okay yet?" He asked her.

"A little," she shrugged. "I mean, Zach is probably still wigged out but I'm gonna try to calm him down."

"What about you?" Jess asked.

"Me?"

"You."

"I just told you," she said.

He shook his head. "Not about Zach. You."

"Oh," Lane frowned. "I don't know how I am, to be honest."

Now he nodded. "You wanna talk about it?"

Lane looked at him questionably. "With you?"

"Well, I mean, Uncle Luke is upstairs but I can go up and get him," he said.

Lane sat down on a stool at the counter. "Isn't it weird? Because of...you know."

"Rory," he stated.

"Yeah," she agreed. "Because she's my best friend and you two...well, you know about you two."

Jess nodded, not sure what to reply to that. "We work together. I guess at some point it's gotta stop being weird, right?"

"Right," she agreed again. "Okay."

He waited for her to say more. When she didn't, he went to do a final sweep of the counters and then he lifted the chairs off of the floor and piled them onto the table. Lane sat still as she watched, working out her thoughts.

"I keep thinking about how I was before she kicked me out," Lane finally said. Jess put the chair he had lifted back down and he turned to face her. "When I had to hide. Hiding things under floorboards, disco ball in the closet."

"And?" He urged.

"And I feel like a kid again," she sighed. "When I was told what I could or couldn't do and that rock music was the devil's music. Right back to being told I couldn't date and if I did, who I was allowed to date."

Jess nodded twice. "Which Zach doesn't fit into."

"Not even a little," she let out a small laugh. "He's the type my mama warned me about. And this whole thing makes me feel like I'm right back there."

"Where you don't want to be," he finished for her.

Lane gave Jess a look of understanding. "I love my mama. I do. We may disagree on so many things but she's a good mother, a good person. But I can't go back to that feeling. Not ever again."

"I know what you mean," he sat down on the seat he had previously begun lifting. "Me and my mom...it was a messy situation."

"What about your dad?" She asked.

Jess shook his head. "Never met him."

"I did," she smiled softly. "But he isn't here. He...he did some work in Korea and, well, he's not here anymore."

"I'm sorry," he said.

"I'm sorry, too," she said.

"Have you ever talked to your mom about this?" He asked, changing the direction of their conversation.

"I tried," she said. "Then I got kicked out."

"You need to talk to her," he said.

Lane tilted her head at him. "Did you talk to yours?"

"Touché," he smirked. "No. Me and her, it's a different kind of mess."

"But can it be fixed?" she wondered.

"I don't know," he sighed. "Maybe. Possibly."

She nodded in understanding. Jess gave her the same head tilt she had just given him.

"Can you and your mom be fixed?" He challenged.

"Maybe," she echoed his word.

They shared a small smile and Lane sat up again. Jess watched her curiously. He wondered if this meant the end of the conversation or if it had gotten too weird.

"I think I'm gonna go home," she stated. "But thank you, Jess. I think you might have actually helped."

"Don't sound so surprised," he said.

Lane laughed. "You know, I wanted to hate you. Because of everything with Rory and what happened with Shane, but I don't know. I think maybe, possibly you could be a good guy."

Jess smirked. "Thanks."

She nodded. "Good night."

"Night," he said and Lane was out the door.

Jess locked up the diner front door and finished the last of the chairs. He made sure everything that needed to be done was done. He headed upstairs and knocked first, unsure of what his uncle and Lorelai could be up to.

Lorelai was the one to open the door. "Hey. Hi. I was just leaving."

"Okay," Jess said.

"Okay," she repeated. "Night."

"Good night," he said and she flew past him quickly. Jess sighed as he remembered he locked the door. "Will she lock -"

"I'll follow her out," Luke said as Jess finally saw him for the first time. He had been washing up apparently.

Luke went out the door and Jess went to his side of the apartment. He took off his shoes and was just about to change out of his shirt and jeans when his uncle walked back in.

"She's gone," he told him and Jess nodded. "Thanks for helping out down there tonight."

"It's my job," he said.

"I know," He replied.

"You don't have to thank me for doing my job," he told him.

"Well, you covered for me," Luke said. "And then there was what Lorelai said -"

"Ah," Jess interrupted. "I wondered when you would bring that up."

"She didn't mean anything by it," he said.

"Right," he said. "Because she tells all the boys her daughter had some kind of relationship with about her liking them."

"I think it slipped," he said.

"Is that why she was so weird when she was leaving?" Jess pointed his thumb over his shoulder to the door.

Luke nodded. "She told me she put her foot in her mouth."

"Little bit."

"Watch it."

"Her words, not mine."

"I know you care about Rory," Luke said. "And I know you don't want to hear any of this right now. Especially not after you just broke up with your girlfriend."

"She wasn't my girlfriend," he interrupted.

"Then whatever she was," he said. "That's not the point, though."

"Because the point is that you're looking out for me and you're looking out for Rory," Jess stated. "I know. Trust me, I know. It doesn't particularly make me jump for joy knowing I can't push her out of my thoughts especially when my uncle is dating her mother."

"It's not like we planned it," Luke defended.

"And I'm not saying you did," Jess commented. "It just makes everything a bit more complicated, doesn't it?"

Luke didn't say a word in return. Jess grabbed his stuff and headed to the bathroom. The older man just stood there and stuffed his hands into his pocket. He whispered to the empty room when he couldn't face saying out loud to his nephew. "I'm sorry."

….

"This is it?" Logan asked as he peered out the limo window.

Rory watched through the same window. "That's it."

"Hmm," he murmured.

"What's that mean?" She wondered.

Logan shook his head. "Just a sound."

She nodded once and reached for the door handle. "I should go. My mom will be waiting."

"All right," he said.

Rory slid out of the limo and was surprised to see Logan behind her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm walking you to the door," he answered casually. "Isn't that what you do at the end of a date?"

"This isn't a date," she countered.

"We had sex," he countered back.

"Ssh!" Rory turned sharply at him. "Not so loud."

"Why not?" He grinned and put his arms around her waist. "It was good, wasn't it?"

"Yes," she blushed but said more seriously. "But this is a small town. My next door neighbor? Known as a town gossip."

"Ah," he said. "I see."

"So this thing you're doing right now…" she said. "Any kind of touching. I'm sure it will be reported around the town by morning."

"Uh-huh," he nodded. "What about this?"

In that instant, he kissed her deeply. Rory got lost in the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. When they pulled apart, she laughed. "Oh, that is definitely going to be front page news."

Logan laughed, too and pulled himself loose. "Good night, Ace. I had a good time."

"Me, too," she replied.

He headed back to the limo and she waved as he climbed in. The driver pulled out of her driveway and she turned back around in time to see her mother at the window.

Rory sighed, held her shoulders up, chin high and walked to the front door. She opened it and stepped in, saying as cheerful as she could. "Hi, Mom."

Lorelai appeared in the archway. "Hi. Who was that?"

"That would be Logan," Rory walked right into the living room and past her mother.

"Logan," she said with a nod. "As in the boy from Yale that's in the same circle as my parents and you're barely friends with? That Logan?"

"That would be him," she replied.

Lorelai followed her. "You looked quite friendly to me."

"That just happened," she shook her head once. "It wasn't planned."

"Ah," she said. "And what exactly is it? That kiss?"

"Not the kiss," she said. "Just...me and him."

"Uh-huh," Lorelai crossed her arms. "So am I right in assuming there was more than kissing then?"

"Yes," she shuffled her feet.

"Rory!" She sighed. "Please do not tell me you did what I think you did."

Her anger flared up. "Well, gee, mom, does what you think I did involve sleeping with him? Because if so, then I can't tell you that."

Lorelai rubbed her hands over her forehead. "Rory. You had sex with him?"

"Like I said, it wasn't planned," she said.

"Please explain to me how you went to my parent's house for a party and ended up sleeping with one of the guests," she said.

"He's the only person I really knew there," Rory exclaimed. "We get along. We talk. When I told him why Grandma was throwing the party, we went to the pool house because he knew I'd need an escape from the matchmaking."

"So he decided to match himself up with you?" She challenged.

"Not everything I do is because a guy convinced me to do it," Rory glared at her. "It's like you think I have no control of my actions."

"Or that maybe - _maybe_ \- you need to take better action," she said.

Rory laughed. "Oh, that's rich. Coming from you?"

"Excuse me?" Lorelai's voice grew louder.

"My whole life I've been told how to act!" Rory yelled, face hot. "And not to do this or that because you didn't want what happened to you happen to me. I'm tired of pretending that if I feel something, I don't."

Lorelai nodded quickly, her own anger on her expression. "And what do you feel now?"

"Like I need to have fun," she said. "That maybe I need to take a step back from being perfect Rory all the time and just do something the usual me wouldn't do."

"And that includes random sex?" She questioned.

She groaned in response. "It's not random sex! I know Logan, he's not just some guy I met tonight."

"And Jess?" She asked.

"This has nothing to do with him," she shook her head.

"You slept with him pretty quickly," Lorelai pointed out. "Was that part of the new you?"

"No," she said. "That was me thinking I had a connection with someone and of course, being let down again."

"And this thing with Logan has nothing to do with Jess either?" She asked.

"Why do you think it has to do with Jess at all?" She questioned.

Lorelai was quick to answer. "You told him you're in love with him and then you start spending time with Logan and now you're sleeping with him."

"So?"

"So?" She repeated. "So maybe jumping into a relationship with a guy you met after telling another one you love him isn't the way to go."

"Me and Logan aren't in a relationship," she told her. "We're just...hanging out."

"Sex is not just hanging out," she explained.

"Well, he's not my boyfriend and I'm not his girlfriend," she said.

She shook her head. "This is gonna end bad."

"No, it won't," Rory said.

"You'll get hurt," she added.

"More hurt than an actual relationship?" She questioned. "Or wanting one and nothing happening?"

"This isn't you," she shook her head.

Rory resisted a scoff. "That's exactly the point. I don't want to be me. Me leads to disappointment and I don't want that."

"I don't want you to get hurt," Lorelai said in a sad voice.

"I'll be fine," she replied. They were silent a moment before Rory decided to change the subject. "I'm gonna go change and take these heels off. I need to wear something comfy right now."

"Okay," she said in a whisper.

"Night, Mom," she said just as sad but sounding tired.

"Night," she replied back.

Rory walked out of the room and into her bedroom. When she shut the door, Lorelai collapsed onto the couch and hid her face in her hands, letting her worry leak out.

 **A/N: Not a lot of Jess in this chapter but I hope the fast update thanks to the previous late one and another Lane/Jess scene because I really like writing them.**


	25. Just causal?

**A/N: first of all, I'm so sorry this is late! I know I usually update much quicker than this. These past couple of weeks have been crazy between work and I just moved. Finding time to write while trying to get into the mindset of the story to not give you crap has not been easy. But thank you to those staying patient with me. I promise I'm making this worth the wait.**

 **Also, I don't usually comment reviews that are less than nice. But if you even have to wonder if a fic is worth reading, maybe you shouldn't be reading it after all. Sorry you don't like the way it's going or anything else about it but it is my story and I do get to let it play out as I wish. Some people may not like it and some might. But as a writer to be told that you don't find my fic worthy of your time, just remember there is someone behind these stories and they work hard to get it out for nothing.**

Jess put the coffee pot back in its place. He had just finished serving Kirk his dinner and dessert which entailed two cups of coffee and little bags of sugar. Finally, he managed to get Kirk to go home and he almost sighed in relief once he was gone. Jess was tired.

With one more look towards his uncle, he decided to take a break. He told him quickly and knowing he had his dealt with Kirk, Luke sent him on his way. Grabbing his jacket, he made sure his pack of cigarettes was in his pocket. Once he knew for sure they were, he headed out the door.

The night was cool and not too dark. He had left his phone at the diner apartment but he didn't care. He didn't have the phone for him anyway. And besides, there wasn't anyone he really wanted to talk to that badly that wasn't right around a corner. Or at least that was what he told himself.

Caleb and Todd have sworn him off when he left New York. It seemed the years of friendship they had didn't matter as much as he thought. They thought he was stupid to leave the city for a small town, especially this particular small town. He wanted to explain how it wasn't like he chose this place but it landed on deaf ears anyway.

Shane was worse. She had tried so hard to convince him to come back to New York. For some reason, she believed he belonged there. Jess did love New York but he wasn't sure he belonged there. Not anymore, at least.

It wasn't long after he was fired that he ended things with her. Whatever they were and whatever they had been...it was over. She called him stupid for wanting to stay in Stars Hollow as a waiter and asked if there was another reason he was breaking it off.

There wasn't, he told her. It was half a truth. He didn't feel it with her. Sure, there was passion and the sex was good but something was missing. It wasn't her, he told himself. He didn't feel the same way with Shane as he had felt with Rory. It didn't even matter his relationship with Rory was brief. It didn't even matter it probably didn't even count as a relationship.

He found himself on the bridge and sat down. Jess let his legs hang over the edge and pulled a cigarette out. He felt around his pockets for his lighter but came up empty. He muttered to himself, "Shit."

Instead of sticking the cigarette back into the pack, he put it between his teeth. He held it as best as he could and shivered slightly. It really was cold now. It felt nice, comfortable to be able to sit outside with no distractions. Lately, he'd found himself writing more and more in a red notebook he bought on a whim. It cleared his head of the cobwebs more than anything had.

Suddenly he felt less alone and a throat cleared. Jess looked up and was surprised to see Lane standing before him. She smiled apologetically at him and had her hands stuffed in her pocket. "Sorry. I didn't know you would be here."

Jess looked at her curiously, cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He smirked. "Should I go?"

Lane shook her head. "No, no. That's not what I meant."

He took the cigarette out of his mouth. "Let me guess - you heard this is a good place to think?"

"Well, yeah," she replied. "Rory said something about here and I don't know. I thought I'd come clear my head."

"How's it going with Zach?" He found himself asking.

"Good," she nodded. "Real good."

"The band?"

"Hep alien is alive and kicking," she grinned.

Jess nodded. "Your mom?"

"Ah," she said. "There it is."

"She still threatening your boyfriend?" He asked with another smirk.

"Not anymore," she replied. "But she's made it obvious how she feels about him."

Jess shrugged lightly. "Lots of parents don't like their daughter's boyfriends. Take it from me."

Lane's lip turned toward slightly to smile softly. "But this is different."

"How?" He asked.

"Because she kicked me out," she answered. "She clearly didn't want me in her house anymore or making my own rules while I lived there. But she has no problem treating me as she did when i lived there."

"That's what parents do," he told her. "I mean, I can't tell you from experience. My mom wasn't the best and considering I never met my father, I have no clue what he's like. But I've heard things."

"Explain," she said.

Jess patted the space beside him on the bridge and she sat down. "Parents are supposed to love you no matter what. Even if you move out or far away, they don't really stop."

"I remember you saying something vaguely like this," she commented.

"What can I say?" He shrugged. "I'm very wise."

"I thought you didn't get along with your mom," she said. "And as previously said minutes ago, you never met your dad. Where does the family wisdom come from?"

Jess looked straight ahead at the water. "From Luke."

"Ah," she replied knowingly. "You guys are close, huh?"

"He's been there my whole life," Jess told her. "My mom, she needed help plenty of times. And there was a lot of times when things got pretty bad. I probably wouldn't have made it this far if not for him."

Lane nodded. "So when Luke called and you were in Florida…"

"There was no question I'd come," he finished.

They were both silent for a moment. Jess couldn't tell what the expression on Lane's face said. He guessed it had something to do with a certain Gilmore girl though. Neither said anything else until Lane decided maybe she should head home.

They said their goodbyes and Jess stayed on the bridge. He stared out at the water and shoved his hands in the pockets from the cold. When it got too cold, he stood up and walked back to the diner.

…

Rory silently closed the door behind her. She tiptoed into her dorm when she suddenly heard a voice and almost yelped in surprise.

"Huntzberger?"

"Paris," Rory held her hand over her heart. "You scared me."

Paris walked forward towards her with her arms crossed. "You didn't answer my question.'

"Yes, I was with Logan," she told her. "Not that it's any of your business."

"Of course it's my business," she huffed. "You're sneaking around with the Hugh Hefner of Yale. I have the right to an opinion."

"I already know what your opinion is," Rory said. "You've made it quite clear these past couple of weeks."

"But I don't think I'm getting through to you because you're still sneaking out on booty calls," she countered.

"It's not...booty calls," she frowned.

"Oh?" Paris raised her eyebrows. "So it's a date? And he doesn't call you and you meet up and have sex?"

"That's not -" she saw the look on her friend's face and sighed. "why does it matter to you who I sleep with anyway? I didn't say much of an opinion to Jamie or to Professor Fleming."

"Because he's gonna break your heart," she said. "He does it to all the girls he hooks up with."

"I highly doubt that," Rory tried to walk past her. "And besides he can't break my heart. We're not even dating."

"You're friends with benefits," she pointed out. "That always leads to some sort of heartbreak. People like you can't just have a nice strings attached thing."

"I can and I am," she crossed her arms now, her path to the room forgotten.

"Don't say I didn't tell you so," she replied.

"I'm sure you will remind me of it regardless," Rory told her.

"Of course," Paris smirked. "It's like you're forgetting who I am, Gilmore."

"How could I forget?" She smiled back, making it clear the tension was gone. "Now, really, Paris. I have to get to sleep. My mom is coming tomorrow and we're gonna make a day of it."

"Well, all right," she uncrossed her arms. "Go to sleep and be on your way."

"Night," her smile faded as she turned to go into her room. Once she was inside with the door closed, Paris' words and her own thoughts took over her mind. She closed her eyes, counted to ten and tried to push it out of her mind.

…..

Lorelai came just as she said she would the next day. Rory and her mother shopped for a while and then they left to get some coffee. Lorelai listened as her daughter talked about classes and Paris and the newspaper but noticed she conveniently left out any mentions of Logan.

It became obvious to Lorelai why she was so hesitant as they passed an outdoor cafe and spotted a certain blonde with a date. "Is that -"

"Logan, yeah," Rory said in a low voice.

"He's over there with a girl," she observed. "They look pretty cozy."

Rory watched them as Logan whispered in the girl's ear and she laughed. His hand was on her leg and her fingers trailed to his. "Yeah, they do."

"What a jerk," Lorelai said.

"He's not a jerk," she defended.

Lorelai looked at her questionably. "Aren't you guys seeing each other?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"And he's over there seeing her," she continued. "Why are you okay about this?"

"Because we're keeping it casual," she replied.

"What does that mean?" Her mother asked.

"It means, he sees me, I see him," she shrugged. "He can see someone else, too."

"And you?" She asked.

"I can see other people, too," she explained.

"That's not what I mean but thanks for clarifying," she said. "I mean, you're okay with this? Casual dating and Logan over there with another girl?"

"I'm fine," Rory said but her expressions showed she was anything but.

"Rory, love of my life, bearer of my name," Lorelai said. "You forget I can tell when you are fine and you, my dear, are not fine."

"It's just weird," she explained. "I mean, last night, he was with me and now he's over there, with someone else -"

"He was with you last night and he plans a date with another girl for the next day?" She questioned. "Give me a brick or something heavy to throw."

"Mom, no," Rory pleaded. "It's just weird is all. I'm good. I'm fine."

"You really have no problem with the guy you're involved with hooking up with other girls?" She wondered.

Rory looked down at her feet then back up with a small nod. "Yes."

Lorelai searched her face, finding her answer not in her daughter's words but in her face. "Okay."

Rory looked towards the stores they passed and exclaimed. "Look at that window! We have to go in there."

Lorelai pretended to be excited. "I'm right behind you, kid."

Rory went in first. Her mother risked a glance towards Logan and his date. They seemed to be sitting even closer than they had been when she first noticed them. She plastered on a fake smile and walked into the store, ready to play the part of being okay with this relationship.

….

Jess ducked back into the diner apartment when his shift was over. He didn't tell Luke he was headed anywhere but he assumed it was okay since he was off the clock. He headed to the bathroom and while he was in there, he heard voices get closer. The apartment door shut and he heard the unmistakable voice of Lorelai Gilmore.

"It was horrible, Luke!" She exclaimed. "It looked like it was killing her to not walk over there."

"Well why didn't she then?" His uncle asked. "I've never known her to not stand up for herself."

"Because she's being casual," her words were in a mocking tone. She obviously wasn't happy.

Jess almost walked out of the bathroom until his uncle spoke again. "Rory? Casual?"

"It's apparently her new thing she's trying," he could almost hear Lorelai's eye roll. "But she's sitting around, seeing him one night and then Logan goes off the next day with someone else."

Logan? Jess briefly wondered who that was. His thoughts were stuck on Rory having a casual relationship with a guy who was okay with seeing other girls though.

"What?" Luke seemed furious. "What a little punk. So he's going on a date with Rory one night and the next day, he's on one with someone else?"

"Oh no no," she said. "It gets much worse than that."

"How can it get worse?" He asked then he seemed to connect it at the same time Jess did. "Rory's - she's sleeping with this guy?"

"Oh yeah," Lorelai said. "For weeks now. See, I thought she was actually dating this guy but then I find out they're sleeping together and she's basically just this side thing of his."

"And Rory's okay with this?" He still seemed angry but he tried to speak calmly.

"Apparently," Lorelai answered. "I don't know, Luke. Something's wrong. Rory isn't the kind of girl to do something like this. She's not a casual kind of girl."

"What about Jess?" He asked before he managed to think first.

"Jess?" She almost scoffed. "What about him?"

Jess resisted his own urge to roll his eyes. He wasn't sure he should be hearing any of this in the first place.

"Weren't they casual?" He asked as a cover.

"I guess?" She tried. "I mean, they were never officially together but she was in love with him so it probably doesn't fit."

Luke sounded even more surprised about this than the Logan thing. "Rory's in love with Jess?"

"Yes," she said. "Or she was, before."

"Does Jess know?" He whispered. It almost was as if he suddenly knew his nephew was there.

The head shake Lorelai did was evident in her voice. "That's not the point, Luke. The point is I want to kill that kid. You didn't see the look on her face when she saw him with the other girl!"

"What can we do?" He asked, in full protective mode.

"I don't know," she sounded defeated. "But I know my daughter. I know she's not this person and whatever is making her this person...I don't want her hurt."

"Do we talk to her?" Luke asked.

"I don't know," Lorelai repeated. "She's going to hate me for even discussing this with anyone, especially you. But you understand and I needed to talk to someone."

Luke paused then asked, "Did you talk to her already about it?"

"I may have tried," Jess heard her say. "When we saw him. It didn't get very far and she's too defensive of this casual thing they have going."

Luke let out a sigh. Jess leaned against the wall, hoping they would leave because he wasn't sure how much more he could listen to. "What if you brought it up again?"

"I attempted, she switched subjects," she replied. "I don't know what to do here, Luke."

"Rory is a smart girl," he said. "She knows right from wrong. She knows her heart. She studies and make pro/con lists. She will make the right decision about this."

"I know," she agreed. "But what if she doesn't?"

"She will," Luke assured her.

He didn't hear anything right now which he guessed meant something he preferred not to think about. It was probably just a hug but he waited in patience until he heard the door shut behind them. Then he grabbed his keys and snuck out of the apartment.

…

Rory sat on her bed in her dorm room, studying. She read back and forth what was on the page before her but none of it processed. She couldn't get her thoughts straight, not even for class.

If she was being honest, she had been edge ever since her mother's visit. Rory had told herself she was okay with the casual thing she had going with Logan. And she had been, right until she had actually seen him with someone else.

It wasn't a jealous feeling. She knew jealousy. She remembered a girl in Chicago named Beth who dated Dean that she even disliked and it wasn't even how that felt. She didn't even feel betrayed. It just felt.. like she was one of many. That logan could drop her and at the snap of his fingers, twenty girls would appear.

She wasn't sure she wanted that. She wanted to mean something to someone. It seemed less likely to be possible lately but it definitely seemed impossible if she was casually having sex with a guy who had no problem sleeping with other people.

She sighed and closed the book. With a hand running through her hair, she let out a sigh and leaned down in her bed. She just needed to relax and get those thoughts out of her mind.

There was a knocking on the front door of the dorm. Rory sat straight up, thankful for the distraction from her thoughts. It'd be brief considering she ordered Thai food but it would help. She climbed off the bed and opened her door out to the main room of the dorm.

The face on the other end of the door when she finally reached it was not the Thai food delivery man.

"Jess," Rory said in surprise. "Hi."

"Hi," he said back as they just stared at each other in the doorway. "Can I come in?"

 **A/N: Sorry to end it there! I'm gonna try to start work on the next chapter asap for you guys!**


	26. Surprise at your door

**A/N: I love you all. Hope this makes up for the slower updates.**

 **Also the revival trailer...if you haven't watched it yet...well why not? There's even a Literati scene in there. Go watch.**

"Yeah," Rory said in surprise. "Sure. Come in, Jess."

He nodded once as he entered the large dorm room. His eyes scanned around the walls, surveying. "It's different than the last one."

Rory shut the door and followed not too far but not too close behind him. The mention of her previous dorm made her think things she didn't want to think of. Not here with him in the room especially. "Yeah, it is."

He turned to face her, stuffing his hands in his pockets. She watched him curiously, wondering why he was here. He didn't offer any explanations so she was stuck.

"What are you doing here?" She finally asked.

"Just wanted to come see you," he said.

She eyed him curiously. "Why?"

"Just wanted to," he shrugged.

"Jess," she sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I don't have time for these games."

"Is Logan waiting for you?" He asked with a tilt of the head.

"Logan?" She asked in disbelief. "How do you know about -"

"Him?" He finished and she nodded slowly. "Let's just say I overheard a conversation I wasn't supposed to hear. Luke and your mom really should check a room out next time."

She turned her head down and he could hear her whisper damn it. When she looked back at him, she seemed unreadable. "Is that why you're here? You heard about me and Logan?"

"From what I hear, there is no you and Logan," he said. "It sounds like just sex."

"Is that a problem?" She crossed her arms.

"No," he shook his head with a small pout. "Just...doesn't sound like you but you go right ahead and have meaningless sex."

"What gives you the right?" She accused. "You overhear my mom talking to Luke, you come strolling to Yale and now you're making these comments as if you know me so well? Screw you."

"I do know you," he said, unaffected by her words.

She scoffed. "You don't. You may think you do but you don't."

"I know your studying habits," he said. "I know you prefer coffee to tea and you make pro/con lists when you can't make a decision. You like mashed potatoes when you're sick and you hate fake sugar in your coffee. You carry a book with you in your purse and you would rather eat a burger than foie gras anyday."

"So?" She said when he took a breath. He looked like he wanted to continue but she didn't let him. "You know things about me, Jess. You don't actually know me."

"I know you're scared of being left," he told her. "Because your dad left your mom and she raised you alone and he barely has a part in your life. I know how you feel about your dad having a new family and I know that even though you'd never tell your mom this, you worry if she has another kid, she'll be so occupied with the new one and won't have time for you."

"How did you -" she cut herself off. She'd never told him that.

"I know you," he repeated.

Jess walked himself closer to her, hands out of his pocket. Her arms stayed crossed as he touched them. She refused to look at him, especially that close to her.

"You have no right to pass judgement on me," she whispered but then spoke louder, finally looking at him. "You were already sleeping with someone else by the next time I saw you after that night."

He dropped his hands and shook his head. "I know but -"

"But what?" She countered as she stepped away from him. "How is it okay for you to sleep with whoever you want but me? If I do it, it's some huge mistake and you think you have the right to come tell me what to do after not speaking to me for months!"

"It's not okay for me!" His tone matched hers and it stunned her. She stepped back in surprise. He calmed his voice down with a deep breath. "That's what I'm trying to tell you. It wasn't me. I don't know what I was doing. It was stupid. I was stupid."

"You were," she agreed. "But it still doesn't justify you barging in here like this."

"When I heard you moved on, I think it really hit me," he said. "That I could lose you or the idea of you and I hated the idea of this other guy with you. And what if i just sat around and left you alone? What if you fell in love with this guy and his casual ways led to hurting you?"

"It shouldn't matter if you lose me," she said. "You never had me to begin with."

"Rory -"

"Don't 'Rory' me!" She shouted, angry again. "I wanna know why you think you can do this to me. I didn't ask for you to come and you don't have the right to question my dating choices or lack thereof. So why are you here?"

"Because I'm in love with you!" He shouted back.

Rory blinked, surprised. She counted the seconds. Jess' face seemed just as surprised as hers, his chest puffing with the anger that led him to shout this confession. His breathing slowed down and she felt hers speed up.

"What?" She finally managed to ask.

"I'm in love with you," he repeated at his normal volume.

She shook her head. "You can't. You don't."

"I wouldn't tell you I did if I didn't," he replied.

Her anger flared back. "You can't do this! You can't just come here and tell me you love me and expect me to fall for it! Especially not just because there's another guy involved."

"I'm not expecting anything," he said. "Just like you didn't expect anything."

"That isn't fair," she said.

"It is fair," he told her. "Because when you told me you loved me, I couldn't stop thinking about it. Then I went back to New York and I broke off whatever it was I had with Shane and -"

"You and Shane broke up?" She questioned.

He watched her. "You didn't know?"

She shook her head fast. "No. How could I know?"

"I called you," he said. "I left you a message. Didn't you listen to it?"

"No," she admitted regrettably. "Should I?"

"Damn it," he murmured to himself but then spoke louder for her. "That's why you never called back. That's why you didn't respond."

"Jess?" She watched him as he connected pieces of information she didn't have together.

"Didn't you wonder why I didn't call on your birthday?" He asked. "Or did you just not care or waved it off?"

"I assumed you forgot," she said. "I mean, it'd be easy to and considering how your birthday went, I figured you'd avoid me."

"Shit, Rory, I wish you'd listened to the message," he said. "I told you how I felt about you. And that if you didn't want to start anything with me or you wanted me to leave you alone, I would. I told you to just not reply to that message and I'd know."

"Oh," she said softly.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Oh."

"I thought you hated me," she said. "For putting you on the spot with my confession then leaving. I figured you'd go back to Shane and New York and forget about me."

"How could I ever forget about you?" He said as he stepped closer to her again. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since Florida."

"Really?" Rory couldn't help the hopefulness that was in her voice. He nodded. "Me, too."

"So we've established that you love me and I love you," Jess said.

She half smiled in agreement but it quickly faded as she remembered she was technically in an agreement kind of relationship. "What happens now then?"

"Well, I was going to kiss you," he smirked the smirk she remembered so well.

Jess leaned in and had his hands on her waist, inching her closer. She put her hands on his chest. "Wait!"

"What?" He asked, worried.

"Logan," she said simply.

"Aren't you not dating?" He asked confused. "If you're not casual -"

"No, we are," she said. "We're casual. But -"

"But he's seeing other people?" he asked.

"Yes."

"And you're not tied to him only?"

"Well, no -"

"That's all I needed to hear," he said as his lips crashed to hers. Rory felt months of hurt and sadness fade away as he kissed her. She felt like finally...she was right. She felt whole.

When he pulled away, he stared into her eyes. His asked a silent question and to it, she said nothing. Rory kissed him back so fiercely that she couldn't stand anymore. She wrapped her legs around his waist as Jess carried her into her part of the dorm.

…

Rory walked as fast as she could into the room. She shut the door behind her with her bare foot and scrambled back to the bed as quick as she could despite the cup of coffee in her hand.

She took a sip before putting it on the table beside her bed and Jess resisted a laugh. Of course she needed coffee. "Good?"

"Delicious," she smiled as she leaned forward to kiss him lightly on the lips.

"Thanks but I was talking about the coffee," he smirked wider.

She grinned. "Sorry to break it to you but I meant the coffee."

"Huh," he said, smirk still in place. "Guess I got to see what I can to change that."

"I guess you do," she agreed.

"Ready when you are," his hands fiddled with the hem of his shirt that she put on.

"Mmm," she shook her head. "After I finish my coffee. I'm not letting it go cold."

"So heat it up," he told her.

She gasped. "Heat up coffee? No. It's best when hot. That's like telling me to reheat my French fries."

"Now you're talking crazy," he commented. "Reheated French fries suck. The only improvement is salt and pepper."

"Finally something we agree on," she smiled.

"We agree that what we just did was fun," he pointed out with another smirk.

"I did not comment on that," Rory said. "Besides, you still have work to do."

"If the work is anything like that, I'm in," he said.

She blushed and grabbed her coffee to hide it. After a long, hot sip, she put it back down and asked what she needed to ask. "So. What happens now?"

"I was kind of hoping you'd tell Logan that the agreement is over," he only half-joked.

"Does that mean this is actually something?" She wondered. She couldn't take it if it wasn't again.

"If you want it to be," Jess answered.

Rory was almost hesitant to reply. "I want it to be. If you do. Do you?"

"I can't do this anymore," he said. "This whole 'I'm in love with you but we're not together' or worse, the friends things again. I'm done pretending you don't mean what you mean to me."

"Me too," she smiled softly. She couldn't deny how she felt when he said he was in love with her. "So...you're my boyfriend?"

Jess laughed. "As soon as you tell that other guy, yeah. If you want me to be."

"I do," she said. "And I will tell him. As soon as I can. My classes are done for the day but you've kinda preoccupied me from leaving just a bit."

"I plan on preoccupying you some more," he smirked.

"Do you?" She grinned. "It may have to wait."

She climbed off the bed and grabbed her coffee, taking a huge gulp that emptied out the contents. "What? Why?"

"I was thinking maybe I tell him now," she answered as she searched for her own clothes.

Jess moved over to the end of the bed and frowned. "And if he keeps you longer than intended?"

"He won't," she pulled her jeans on. "I'm just gonna go, say 'Logan, this thing we have is over' and leave. Nothing big."

"I don't trust him," he said but still got out of the bed and began to get dressed himself.

"You don't know him," she pointed out.

"The guy is okay with casual relationships," he said. "And that he's having one with you makes me know he's crazy because if I was him, I wouldn't want other girls on the side."

Rory smiled. "That's sweet but it's still something I have to do."

"I'm not disagreeing on that," he said as he finished getting dressed aside from his shirt, which Rory still wore. "I'm just saying how about me and you, we make the most of my time left?"

"You're leaving?" She almost scoffed. He said this was different and she believed him.

"Luke might be a little annoyed if I skip work again," he told her.

"Oh," she said. "Luke. Job. Right."

"I mean, I could tell him I'm staying at Yale and having mind blowing sex with his girlfriend's daughter," he said seriously.

Rory's face turned into one of horror. "No. You're right. You gotta go to work. I'm not sure the reactions to that will be as excited as ours."

"So are we a secret again?" He asked more serious than his last question.

"Not a secret," she shook her head as she walked closer to him. "Just I'd rather my mom hears it from me, you know? Especially when I know how upset she was that I was okay with this casual thing."

"She did sound pretty upset," he remembered her words in the apartment. "But I am glad she came because it led me to here."

"Me, too," she said.

Jess kissed her lightly then. "You know, I would have come eventually. I think she just gave me the push I needed."

"You better have come," she poked his chest with her index finger but kissed him again. "Okay, how about this? Let's go out. Maybe to a movie then we come back, order takeout and we'll recreate our earlier activities?"

"Deal," he said after he pretended to take some thought.

"Good," she grinned as she moved out of his arms.

"Hey, Rory?" He called out.

"Yeah?"

"I might need my shirt back if we're going out," he smirked.

"Oh," Rory looked down at herself. She had almost forgot she was wearing it, it was so comfortable. She pulled it over her head and gave it to him. "Here."

Jess laughed as she went into her closet for a new shirt. "You sure we can't just stay here first?"

"Not yet," she said. "Anticipation is well worth the waits, right?"

"For you?" He said. "Always."

She pulled a shirt on and kissed him again. "Jess, I'm happy right now."

"Me, too," he smiled back at her.

"Tomorrow, I tell Logan," she confirmed. "But now, come on, get the shirt on and let's go."

He let out another laugh. "Yes, ma'am."

They each grabbed their jackets and were out the door.


	27. It's real

"What about this one?"

Jess looked to where Rory pointed. It was a small scar on his left side, barely noticeable. He laughed. "Pass."

"What?" She let out a laugh too. "No passes. Tell me."

"Let's just say never talk back to someone bigger than you while drunk," he laughed again. Rory loved his laugh.

"Okay now I really wanna know this story," she said.

They sat on her bed at Yale. Rory wore his shirt again and Jess sat clad only in his boxers. Empty containers of Chinese food laid on her desk as they faced each other.

He shook his head. "Maybe another time."

She pouted. "Fine. Something easier, then. What's this mean?"

Jess didn't have to strain his head to see what she meant. He sighed silently. "That's a star tattoo."

"I see that," she smiled. "What's it mean?"

"You like Elvis Presley?" He asked suddenly.

Rory blinked, surprised. "Um, I guess. I mean, I don't not like him."

"Did you ever hear his song 'Pocketful of rainbows'?" he added.

"No," she shook her head.

"Well, that," Jess pointed to the star tattoo. "Was inspired by that song."

Rory moved his arm to get a better view of it. "When did you get it?"

He shrugged. "I was seventeen. My mom had just broken up with another dirtbag and I thought 'it can only get better right?'."

Jess laughed softly, a sound that found his words less than humorous as he remembered. Rory took her eyes off the tattoo and watched his face as he continued.

"I found a box of records," he said. "I still don't know if they were my mom's or someone else's but I found this Elvis one. The song was on there and I don't know, I guess I related to it in a weird way. So I got it to remind myself of how I felt that day."

He looked back to Rory and her face looked sad. Her eyes looked shiny and he smiled softly at her. His thumb brushed her cheek back and forth and she found herself smiling back.

"That's really nice, I mean, but sad," she replied. Jess laughed again which made her smile bigger. "I like when you do that. Laugh."

He stopped. "It's not that common."

"I still like it," she told him.

"Good, because it's only because you're here," he answered.

Rory couldn't help beaming. He watched her and his expression turned into a smirk. Her hand found his, dangerously close to her leg. She twined their fingers together but kept her eyes on him.

"What are you thinking?" Jess finally asked.

"That I love you," she smiled, grateful to be able to say it.

A smile replaced his smirk. "I love you, too."

"I really like hearing that," she told him. "I never thought...I never thought we'd be here, you know? Like this, saying I love you."

"I know what you mean," he said and leaned forward to kiss her lightly.

At least he meant it to be lightly. Rory felt herself moving closer to Jess, so close she was almost in his lap. She could almost feel him, if she just moved an inch closer. A sound erupted from her throat and he smirked against her mouth.

The kiss deepened and this time, Jess pulled her into his lap. She yelped in surprise which broke the kiss. He laughed which made her laugh but the laughter ended when he kissed her. It was just as passionate as it had been, maybe even more, with their positioning.

Her fingernails dug into him. He didn't care. His lips roamed hers, her cheek, behind her ear, down to her neck. She closed her eyes in contentment. The feel was too much for her and the loud buzzing of a phone interrupted them.

"Don't," Jess muttered against her skin. "If it's important, they'll leave a message."

Rory bit her lip, thinking. "I'm so sorry."

Quickly, she jumped out of his arms and off the bed. She picked up her phone and answered. "Hey, Mom."

There was a groan from the bed. She looked over as she saw Jess had now laid down. He knew this wouldn't be quick.

"Hey, kid," Lorelai replied. "I was getting worried about you. I haven't heard from you all day."

Rory looked away from Jess to down at the ground. "I've been busy."

"Oh," she said, as if she interrupted studying. "Classes?"

"Classes...and other stuff," she replied with another glance to her bed. It was almost a surprise to see he just laid there, no reaction.

"Paris?" Lorelai guessed.

Rory let out a small laugh. "Paris is actually not here at the moment. I'm not sure where she is."

"If it's not classes and it's not Paris…" she trailed off. "Oh."

"It's not what you think," she rubbed her forehead. She really didn't want to do this over the phone.

"So you're not with Logan?" She wondered.

"No," Rory answered honestly. "I am not with Logan."

"Okay," she surrendered. "But, hon, I hope I didn't say something wrong while I was there. I don't want to push you away and I know this casual thing, it's what you chose and I'll try to be better about it -"

"I'm breaking it off with Logan," Rory stopped her mid-speech.

"You are?"

"Yes."

"Because of me?"

She shook her head and looked at Jess, who tried to not seem as interested in the conversation as he was. "No. There are other reasons."

"And I'm guessing you don't want me to know," she said sadly.

"I didn't say that," she replied.

"Rory, you're twenty years old," she told her. "You don't have to tell me everything. I respect that and I want you to know that."

"I know you do," she sat down at her desk and hid her face from Jess. "And I will tell you. I want to tell you."

"It's completely your choice," she said and Rory could tell she meant it. She could almost hear the worry in her voice that they were losing what they have.

"I'll tell you this weekend," she said. "I promise. Just right now…"

"You have to go," she finished for her daughter.

"Yeah," she whispered.

"Okay," Lorelai said. "I'll let you back. And see you this weekend? Are you coming or will you still be busy?"

"I'm coming this weekend," she confirmed. "I promise."

"Hey, sweets?" Lorelai said.

"Yeah?"

"You know I'm just trying to look out for you right?"

Rory smiled. "I know."

They said their goodbyes and hung up. Rory took a deep breath and walked back over to the bed. She curled herself up against Jess and he wrapped his arm around her.

"You okay?" He asked.

She nodded into his chest. "Yeah. Just, she knew I was holding back. And I didn't want to tell her over the phone. Not after I didn't tell her about Florida. I want to do it in person."

"Then what's wrong?" He stroked her hair.

Another shake of her head. "It's stupid but the conversation felt so weird. It's like she felt like she's losing me."

"Is she?"

"No. Never."

"Then tell her that," he said. "I'm sure she's just worried because of the whole thing with Logan and then she worried you were being vague to hide something. Or someone."

She looked at his face and saw a small smirk. "Yeah, well, she knows me too well because I am hiding something...someone."

He laughed and kissed her head. "I wouldn't worry about it. Because this weekend you'll tell her and if it's bad, there's always an apartment above the diner where your soon-to-be boyfriend will be staying."

"I forgot we have a whole apartment to ourselves there," she grinned.

"And right now, we have a whole dorm to ourselves," he grinned back.

"Paris might come home eventually," she commented.

"Might," he said.

Rory didn't need any more words to know where his thoughts headed. She climbed up from her position and placed herself on top of him. It didn't take long for them to get heated up as she ran her hands through his shorter than when they met hair.

Jess' hands went to above her waist, right over the top of her panties. She deepened the kiss further and this time he was the one who let out a sound.

"Rory," he said and she grinned against his mouth. It was working.

She moved away from his lips and held a finger over them. "Ssh."

"Rory -" he tried again but she kissed him to shut him up. There would be time for talking later. For now, she wanted to enjoy their time together as best she could before he had to leave.

…

The next morning, Rory woke up first. She quietly pulled on her panties and a pair of pajama pants. Next she slipped a loose T-shirt on and with one more glance at Jess, fast asleep and naked in her bed, she opened the door.

It wasn't a surprise what she came out to. Coffee was brewed, Paris' books were on the table as they hadn't been the previous night. As she stepped further away from her room, she heard her.

"Finally came out for air?" Paris asked as she crossed her arms.

"Hey, Paris," Rory casually tried. "Did you just get in?"

"No," she told her. "I got in last night, actually. But I opened the door and I came inside and what happened? Oh right. I heard you."

"You...heard me?" Rory spoke each word slowly.

"Yes," she sighed. "You and Huntzberger, whatever you're doing in there, I don't wanna know. Though I do have a pretty good idea."

"Paris -"

"Just promise me next time your casual boy toy stays over, you'll warn me?" She retorted. "I really don't need to hear you having sex. That's crossing a line."

"It wasn't Logan," she blurted out.

Paris raised her eyebrows. "If it wasn't Huntzberger, who could it possibly -"

The door to Rory's room opened and both girls looked over. Rory hid her face down to not see the realization hit her friend. Jess looked between the two of them, noticing Rory's hidden face and Paris' look of surprise.

"Oh," she said. "That's who."

"Gellar," Jess said as naturally as he could.

"Mariano," she replied.

Rory watched them curiously. She wasn't sure of the reaction of either one but she knew Lorelai's reaction will probably be calmer than Paris. Whatever it was, she knew she could handle it as long as Jess was there.

"I think I'm gonna go to the newspaper," she said. "I have a class coming soon but maybe I'll go check there out first."

Paris quickly grabbed her books that were out and leaned to Rory. "Remember, no glove, no love."

Rory actually smiled at that. "Bye, Paris."

She quickly shuffled herself out of the dorm. Rory turned to look over at Jess. He was dressed again and he gave her a small smile. "Morning."

"Morning," she smiled back and walked over to him. "A very good one."

"If only I didn't have to get back soon," he said.

"And I have class," she pouted.

Jess wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. "What time is your class?"

She looked at the clock on the wall. "About forty five minutes."

"I can do with forty five," he replied and kissed her quickly.

She laughed. "Do what?"

"I'm gonna make you breakfast," he told her simply.

"Really?" She beamed.

"Yes," he kissed her again. "Now, go, take a shower, imagine I'm in there with you. When you come back, you'll have something to eat."

"Okay," she smiled brighter. "I love you, you know that?"

"I do," he smiled back. "I love you, too."

Rory disentangled herself out of his arms. "I never tire of hearing that."

"Well, good because I never tire of saying it," he told her.

"You're so cheesy," she beamed.

"Don't tell anyone," he put a finger to his lips to keep a secret.

She pretended to zip up her lips and throw away the key. "Secret safe with me."

"Get out of here," he tapped her side lightly with a smile.

With another quick kiss, she ran back into her room and grabbed her stuff. After her shower, she came back to pancakes with whipped cream on top. After some pressing, he confessed to her how he found her cafeteria card and managed to sneak the food from there because he couldn't find the ingredients.

When it was time for both to go, he led her out of her dorm room by the hand. She turned to face him, wanting to put her arms around him but her books made it a little harder.

"So…" he said.

"So," she agreed with a sigh. "Is it selfish to not want you to go?"

"Is it selfish of me to not want to go?" He countered.

"No," she replied. "Call me when you get back to Stars Hollow? Even if I'm in class?"

"Will do," he told her and put his own arms around her now, kissing her forehead again.

"This is real, right?" She questioned. "This isn't some vivid dream I'm having and really I'm gonna wake up and you're gonna be working and this didn't happen?"

"Well, if we had more time, I'd take you back into the room and do a much more vivid pinch to tell you you're not dreaming," he smirked.

"Don't tempt me," she said with a blush.

Jess kissed her softly. "This is real and I'm in love with you. That's what matters."

"I love you, too," she smiled. "Now, go, before I don't let Luke have you back."

"Yes, ma'am," he removed one arm from her waist and saluted. "If I can get away later, I'll come back. If not, it's almost the weekend and you'll be visiting your mom so…"

"So it makes sense if I make a visit to you, right?" She finished casually.

He shrugged indifferently. "It's your call."

Rory laughed and kissed him again. "Bye. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye," he said as she backed away from him. Jess went back into the dorm with a small smile tugging at his mouth.

Rory smiled too until she turned around. Logan stood there and obviously had just seen what happened. She lifted her head high and walked past him, knowing she had no time for this right now.

…..

When Jess got back to Stars Hollow, Luke seemed annoyed. He crossed his arms as he walked in and watched his nephew head upstairs. The shower turned on and when the water stopped, he was downstairs in the diner within minutes.

Jess noticed his uncle's stare. "What?"

"Where the hell were you?" Luke asked.

"You said I could have a later shift today," he replied.

"So your response was go out all night and don't come back until noon?" He questioned.

"I came back, didn't I?" he pointed out. "I didn't miss any of my shift."

"That's not the point," Luke said. "Come here."

He walked to the storage room as Jess followed behind. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened," he said. "I went out. I stayed out. I came back."

"I know you heard me and Lorelai yesterday," he confessed.

"And I thought I was so clever," Jess commented.

"Did you go see Rory?" Luke asked.

He sighed. "Yes."

"And?"

"And you'll find out soon enough from l

Lorelai."

"You're really not gonna tell me?" He said.

"I'm really not gonna tell you," Jess replied.

Luke crossed his arms. "Is it bad?"

"I guess it depends on who's point of view we're talking about," he said.

He shook his head. "I'm gonna have to deal with an aftermath of some kind, aren't I?"

Jess smirked and walked out of the storage room. Once he was out and away from Luke, he took a deep breath. Just a few more days. He can wait a few more days for Rory to tell her mom, couldn't he?

He took out his phone quickly and headed out the door. Luke saw him leave but figured let him go for now. He knew he wouldn't get whatever happened out of him. Not yet or until Lorelai knew. He sighed and went back to work.

The phone rang but there was no answer. He heard Rory's voicemail come up and took a deep breath, preparing his message.

"Hey," he started. "Just got back. Already have been interrogated by Like about where I was. He knows I went to see you but not what. I just hope Lorelai doesn't go too nuts with the news. Or maybe I do. Because I have an upstairs apartment to myself if Luke stays out and I have plans for what I'm going to do to you."

"Call back when you can," he finished. "And please tell me you talked to you know who. I hate to think I'm sharing you. Bye. See you later, I hope."

He hung up and walked back into the diner. Luke watched him, as well as Miss Patty who sat by with Babette. They were ready to get gossip going about where exactly the younger Danes man had been all night...if only they knew.

….

"Ace, wait up."

Rory walked out of her class and turned quickly. She hadn't expected Logan to wait outside for her. When she realized she had, her stomach sunk in anticipation. She wasn't sure how to word what she was going to say correctly.

She tried to smile. "Hey, Logan."

"I've been trying to catch you all day," he told her.

"I know," she shook her head. "It's been a busy day."

"I noticed," he said. "Was he anyone I know?"

"No," she shook her head. "You don't know him."

"Good," he grinned. "I'd hate to have this guy everyday or think of him when I'm with you."

"Logan," she sighed.

"What?"

"I'm not gonna be with you," she said.

He didn't understand. "What do you mean?"

"This casual thing, it's not me," she said.

"You were kissing some guy outside your dorm this morning," he said. "It seems to be working."

"That guy from this morning wasn't a casual thing," she tried to explain.

"What was he then?" He asked. "Boyfriend? Husband?"

"No," she sighed again. "He's important."

"So what then?" He asked. "You want a boyfriend and not the casual thing? I can be a boyfriend, Ace."

"It's not that I want a boyfriend, Logan," Rory explained. "I want _him_."

"Ace, come on," he urged. "We're good together. We work. We could give this a shot."

"I don't want to give it a shot," she almost shouted. "You're not understanding me. This thing between us, it's over."

"Ace."

"I have to go."

Rory walked away from him and kept going until she reached her dorm. Once inside, she closed the door tightly behind her. She took deep breaths and counted to ten before she finally put her books down and moved away from the door.

To be honest, she had expected something similar to that reaction. But she hadn't expected Logan to offer being her boyfriend. It wasn't about just having a boyfriend and he needed to know that. It was about Jess, that he was who she wanted.

She pulled out her phone and smiled when she saw a missed call from Jess and a voicemail. Feeling calmer, she called it and her smile grew. A part of her thought she should be worried about her mother's reaction too but right now she didn't care.

Because right now she was in love and in a few days, everyone would know.

 **A/N: the Lorelai/rory scene feels to me so awkward. I don't know why it came out like that. I hope maybe you guys think it doesn't.**


	28. Part Friday Night Dinner Part Confession

**A/N: Friday Night Dinner scene has been helped along thanks to Not as Cute as a Pushkin :)**

Days had passed. It was now Friday and Rory was about to head out of Yale and to Friday Night Dinner. Paris stood in the doorway with her arms crossed as she watched her. Rory just stuffed more items into her bag that she would need over the weekend.

"Are we still not talking about it?" Paris asked.

Rory kept packing. "I know what you're going to say so we're not."

"How do you know what I'm going to say?" She asked.

"Because you told me we would eventually sleep together again," she finally turned around. "There's also a chance you might say I'm stupid for falling back into the trap."

"I wasn't going to say that," she countered.

She raised an eyebrow. "No?"

"Well, I would," she said. "But I'd also say you made the right decision getting out of that whole casual relationship. And that it's obvious how you felt about him for months so maybe it's a good thing."

"Huh," she said, a slight smile to her face as she realized how Jess that reaction is. "So you think me and him...is a good thing?"

"I think not denying your feelings is a good thing," Paris corrected. "Whatever happens beyond that is yet to be determined."

"Me and Jess... we're together now," Rory said and couldn't help the smile now. "Actually together. Dating."

Paris watched her expression and found happiness in it. "And you're happy with this decision?"

She nodded. "I am. Really happy."

"Then that's what matters," she said and sat on the couch. "However, if it crashes and burns, I will be prepared."

"Thanks so much for the hope," Rory turned around again to zip up her bag.

"You know, I've seen Logan around since," she said.

"Yeah?" She replied curiously. "How is he?"

"He seemed different," she told her.

"Different how?" She made a scrunched face as she turned back around, hand grasped onto her bag.

Paris shrugged. "Just different. I don't really know his normal behavior but you might."

Rory nodded slowly. "He probably just seems different to you because you don't know him. I'm sure he's the same."

"You're probably right," she said. "It was just sex after all. He can't be affected by that."

"Right," she agreed but was suspicious. She looked at the time and almost gasped. "I have to go. You gonna be okay here?"

"Sure," she said indifferently. "Go home. See your boyfriend and your Norman Rockwell town."

She gave a small smirk. "I will. See you, Paris."

"And as always -"

"No glove, no love."

Paris gave her a smirk of her own. "Right."

"Bye, Paris," she said as she grabbed her jacket and headed out the door.

With a deep breath, she braced forward into the weekend. Tonight she had Friday Night Dinner but after...after she had to tell her mom about Jess. She just hoped it would go over well.

…..

"So."

"So what?"

Lane sighed. "Something's going on with Rory."

"How can you tell?" He asked, face still in his book as he pretended not to know what was going on with his girlfriend.

"She's hiding something," she said. "Something big."

He resisted a smirk. "Okay."

"And I think you know what it is," she accused.

Jess turned to look at her. "How would I know?"

"I think it has to do with you," she continued.

"What about me?" He raised an eyebrow.

"She broke it off with Logan," she said. "Did you know that?"

"Logan?" He said as if he hadn't done the guy bodily harm a hundred times over in his head without even knowing what he looked like.

"The guy she was sort of seeing," Lane clarified. "You know who I mean."

He shook his head. "Sorry. I don't."

"I know what you're doing," she accused.

"Yeah?" He challenged with a smirk. "What am I doing?"

"You know what's going on with Rory," Lane pointed her finger at him. "And you're keeping it to yourself for some reason. As far as I knew, you two weren't even talking now you know her secrets."

He shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not."

She watched him go back to his book and she groaned. "I will find out."

"I have no doubt," he kept smirking as she walked away to take orders.

Luke walked by him at that moment. "You giving my employees a hard time?"

"It's not my fault if they ask me stuff," he said, eyes still on the pages in front of him.

"Could be a little less snarkier," he commented.

The smirk stayed on Jess' face. "Well, I could...but it's just much more fun this way."

"One day that's gonna get you in trouble," he told him as he walked away.

The bell rang above the diner door and in walked a familiar voice. Lorelai sat three seats down from him at the counter, her purse landed with an almost thud. He wondered if she carried bricks in there for anyone who wronged her daughter.

"Don't you have dinner soon?" Luke asked her.

"Really soon," she agreed.

"So why are you here?" He wondered. "I thought you usually needed time to prepare before going to your parents."

"Tonight, I need preparation before seeing Rory, too," she confessed which got Jess' attention. "Tonight she's going to tell me something and I have no idea what it is."

"That's usually how it works when something needs to tell you something," he replied. "It's usually something the other person doesn't already know."

Lorelai glared at him which made Jess laugh quietly. Neither noticed or if they did, they ignored it. "I'm worried about what it is."

"Has she given you any hints?" Luke asked as he handed her a coffee.

Lorelai instantly drank some. "None. Which is why I'm worried."

"It could just be something she'd prefer to tell you in person," he said. "It doesn't mean it's life changing."

"I wasn't worried about life changing but thank you," she drank some more. "I don't know. I can feel our relationship changing, Luke. We used to tell each other everything and now it just feels different."

"She's still telling you," he attempted to comfort her. "She's just waiting to tell you face to face."

"You're right," she sighed as she finished her coffee. "I just can't shake the feeling that it's something bad."

Jess hid his face in his book so his expression wouldn't show. Luke put his hand reassuringly on Lorelai's. "She will be fine, Lorelai. It will be fine."

She nodded hopefully and slid the cup back to her boyfriend. "Right."

"Now go worry about dinner," he said. "I'm sure it hasn't kicked in yet how close it is to seven."

"Crap!" She exclaimed as she noticed. "Bye, babe."

"Bye," they kissed quickly over the counter and she rushed out the door, purse hanging by her fingers.

Jess shook his head and once Luke was gone, he headed upstairs. It was nice to be free of a shift even if the only person he wanted to spend time with wasn't here. He tried calling Rory but when he didn't get her, figured she was on her way. Instead, he took out the notebook he had begun writing in and continued.

….

"Well, this is a very big honor, you know," Richard said.

Rory had just finished telling him and her mother about how a student from Chilton was going to be coming to Yale and she was asked to show her around. She conveniently left out Paris was yet to be told.

"Of all the Yale alumni, they're asking you?" He continued.

"I guess they chose who they could," she smiled.

"Nonsense," he told her. "They were very wise for choosing you."

"And you had no influence on this, Dad?" Lorelai wondered.

"I had nothing to do with it," he confirmed. "Rory can make these accomplishments on her own, Lorelai."

"I know she can," she replied. "Just, there's a lot of students at Yale, Dad and you have some swing."

"I do not have swing," he sounded appalled.

"They probably just wanted someone from Chilton," Rory interjected. "I was vice president. It makes sense."

"And they didn't ask who the president was?" Richard asked.

"I'm sure Headmaster Charleston would be terrified to ask Paris to do such a task," Rory explained.

"Have you thought about the kinds of things you'd like to show her?" He asked.

"She'll come to my classes with me, obviously," Rory answered. "Maybe she'll come to the paper with me and I thought I'd show her the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library."

He looked satisfied. "That sounds delightful. Of course you have to show her the Gutenberg, too."

"Steve?" Lorelai asked.

"Bible," Richard corrected.

"Yes," Rory nodded. "I'm a little torn between taking her to the Hewitt Memorial Quadrangle or the Science Center and Gymnasium."

"That is a conundrum," Richard frowned.

"Especially since she'll be snoring by then," Lorelai commented. "You'll be dragging her dead weight around campus."

"Lorelai, these things are of great interest to any young person considering Yale," he told her. "Personally, I would enjoy everything on the list."

"Me, too," Rory agreed.

"It wouldn't hurt to throw something fun in," Lorelai suggested. "It doesn't have to be a kegger or anything but still, something not so studious maybe."

"Your mother may be right," Richard agreed.

Lorelai's jaw fell open. "Who heard that?"

"A good college experience is a well-rounded experience," he explained. "It's important for you to show her Yale students have fun, too. Have her touch the toe!"

"Right!" Rory exclaimed. "I can't believe I almost forgot about the toe."

"The toe?" Lorelai asked.

"It's the statue of Theodore Woolsey," Rory explained. "Whoever touches the toe, gets good luck."

"Make sure you get a parent consent on that one because that sure sounds fun," Lorelai said.

Richard smiled delightedly at his granddaughter. "It is quite exciting to watch you at Yale. It was such a good time for me. Tell me, are you making friends?"

"I'm making friends," Rory nodded.

"And what of Logan Huntzberger?" He asked.

Rory swallowed hard. "Yeah. We're, we're friendly, Grandpa."

Lorelai didn't comment but noticed the look on her face. Richard however, didn't. "Your grandmother told me you two were friends. A fine boy from a fine family."

Rory picked at a piece on her dress. "Yeah. He's a good guy."

"More than 'a good guy' I'd say," he replied. "He works on the paper, too, am I correct?"

"That is correct," she nodded.

"His father owns quite a few papers," he continued. "Maybe the connection to the Huntzberger family is just what you need to get you into the field."

"That could definitely help," she agreed again, her stomach sinking as she thought of him.

Lorelai still noticed her expression and decided to change the subject. "So, a toe that grants wishes?"

Richard didn't fall for it. "His parents are good friends of ours. They've been coming to our Christmas parties for years. His mother's on the pediatric hospital committee with your grandmother."

"Oh, that sounds...really nice," Rory replied. She wasn't sure what to say in the topic of Logan or his family.

"It's quite more than nice," Richard added.

"Very," Lorelai said for her daughter. "Dad, do you think maybe mom will notice we've gone over time?"

"Oh, dear," he looked at the time.

Rory shot her mother a thankful look as they stood up and got rid of their glasses.

…..

"Well, that was weird," Lorelai commented on the drive home. They were almost to Stars Hollow now but she noticed her daughter had been distant all night ever since the Logan mentions.

"Which part?" Rory tried to joke.

"The mention of Logan," she said. "He just kept talking about him or his family."

"Thank you, by the way," Rory looked over at her. "For getting that subject dropped."

"No problem, kid," she smiled at her.

"I didn't know what to say," she explained. "You don't just blurt out 'Hey me and him had this casual relationship but I broke it off so the subject of him is a tiny bit awkward currently'."

"I could imagine how that would go over with my parents," Lorelai joked.

"It would not go over at all," she let out a small, humorless laugh. "Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember how I have something to tell you?"

She nodded slowly, swallowing hard. "I vaguely remember you saying something to that extent."

"It kind of connects to Logan," she said. "I mean, not entirely or really at all but somewhat."

"Somewhat?" She wondered.

"I broke it off with him because I'm not a casual kind of girl," she explained. "But partly there was another reason."

Lorelai nodded, trying to seem indifferent. "What was it?"

"Not what," she sighed lightly. "Who."

She swallowed again. "Who. I'm gonna take a guess on the whole might be."

"It's Jess," Rory said as they reached their hometown.

"Ah," she said knowingly. "That should have been my first guess."

Rory frowned. "Who was your first guess?"

"I was thinking maybe that girl you saw Logan with the other day," she shrugged.

She shook her head. "No."

"Well, what happened?" She asked. "I mean, you haven't talked to Jess in a while. What changed?"

"Jess came to see me the other day," Rory answered. "He knew about me and Logan."

"Man," Lorelai closed her eyes. "I hope Luke didn't tell him."

"It doesn't matter how he knew," she defended. "He knew and he came to see me and he…"

"He what?"

"He told me he's in love with me," she spoke in a low voice. "There was this whole speech and I just knew."

"Oh, man," she shook her head. "I should've known."

"What?"

"I should've known he'd do this."

"Do what exactly?" She questioned. "You've talked to him before. He's not a bad guy and you know how I feel about him."

"He has this habit of popping in and out of your life," she commented.

"But now he's my boyfriend," she replied.

Lorelai almost groaned. "I don't want you to get hurt, sweetie. Each time you've...been with him, he left. Twice now."

"Yes well he was with me the other night and he's still my boyfriend," Rory commented.

"Rory…" she said.

"If it's anything else against Jess, I'd rather not hear it," she told her.

"You know I'm just looking out for you," she said. "I don't want you hurt."

"Right now he isn't the one hurting me," she retorted. She saw the diner in sight and could almost make out Jess by the counter.

"Ouch," she tried to make light of the conversation. "I'm sorry, hun. I just want to make sure this is what you want."

"I want it," she said. "So does he."

"And it's serious?" She wanted to be sure. "He's not going to leave this time?"

"No," Rory shook her head once.

"Okay," she said. "Then I trust you. And I know I've met him. I know he doesn't seem like a bad guy. But I'm a little biased when it comes to you. You can't blame a mother, right?"

"No, I guess not," she gave her a small smile.

Lorelai was about to then away from the diner when she next spoke. "Okay. Good. Does this mean movie night is back on?"

"Actually…" she fiddled with her fingers. "Can you drop me off?"

She noticed where they were in front of and have a small smile. "Of course. You wanna go see Jess."

"Is that okay?" She asked. "I'll be back in a little bit."

"Yeah, it's fine," she stopped the car. "Don't worry about it."

Rory smiled brightly and leaned forward to kiss her mom on the cheek. "Thanks, Mom."

She opened her door to the Jeep and climbed out. Lorelai watched as she headed into the diner, right to Jess who leaned against a counter, a book of some sort in front of him.

…..

Rory hugged Jess as soon as she saw him. He was surprised to get this kind of greeting considering but he wasn't about to complain.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Dinner go good?" He asked.

"Dinner went well," she replied.

They noticed the patrons of the diner, Luke and Lane included, had eyes on them. They didn't care. "So now you're here to visit me?"

"I said I would," she said.

Jess smirked with a nod. "Huh."

"Shut up," she said. "I want to tell you something."

"Okay," he agreed and she took his hand and led him upstairs.

Luke walked over to Lane. "You know about this?"

"No," she replied. "I knew nothing about this."

He eyed the curtain protectively. He planned on going up there in ten minutes. But for now, he went back to work.

"So your old school is trusting you with a student?" He asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. It's only for a couple of days but I'm not sure if I should do it."

"Are you kidding?" He asked. "Of course you're going to do it."

"I am?" He nodded. "How come you're so sure?"

"Because I know you," Jess replied. "And I know you're excited about this so don't downplay it. Not around me."

"I am excited," she smiled shyly. "I didn't want to sound weird or anything but I am."

He smiled at her smile. "Good. Because the girl I fell in love with would love this opportunity."

"Well, you better tell her she lost it to me," she countered.

"That's not the only thing she lost to you," he put his hands on her waist.

"I told my mom," she said.

He nodded curiously. "How did she react?"

"Like Mom," she replied. "Protective. She just wants me to be happy."

"Are you?"

"Yes."

"Me, too."

"But I can't stay here tonight," she told him. "I promised Mom a movie night."

"That's fine," he said. "Just make sure you cut out all this boyfriend time for me this weekend before you go back to your fancy school and enrich high school students' experience."

"Promise," she said with a smile as she leaned in to kiss him. "I missed this."

"It's been three days," he said.

"Three days is too long," she said against his lips.

"I'd agree to that," he replied.

"I love you," Rory said. "And I'm glad that this happened. Im glad you came the other day."

"Me, too," he said.

"I have to go," she said sadly.

"Go," he said. "I get it."

Rory gave him a sad smile and kissed him again. It got deeper and almost consumed them both before she broke apart. She moved herself out of his arms when something caught her eye.

"You're wearing the jacket?" She asked.

"This jacket?" He pointed to the denim jacket that was on the hook closest to the door. "I just started to."

"Because of me?" She smiled.

"I'd be lying if I said you had no factor in it," he answered.

She smiled wider. "I'm glad you like it."

"I love it," he said but obviously didn't just mean the jacket.

"Okay now I really have to go," she laughed.

"I'll see you later?" He asked.

"Yeah," she nodded and Jess smiled. With another kiss, she headed out the door. He waved to her which caused her to wave back.

When she was gone, he sat down on the couch with a smile. For the first time, Jess was in love and he didn't mind it. Not even a little.

 **A/N: This chapter and the next is dedicated to a very special friend of mine. She's going to meet Milo next weekend and she's one of my favorite people in the world. Thanks for always being around and for the amazing videos. Have an amazing time in Atlanta :)**


	29. Back in Stars Hollow

**A/N: For Yota.**

If Lorelai had any further comments about Rory and Jess, she gave no sign of it. Rory waited all night for it. She watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail with baited breath. She dug into the bowl of popcorn and ate a half a bag of red vines in anticipation. Nothing happened.

After she had went to her room for the night, she called Jess. They talked about Lorelai's non-existant reaction after she went to the diner. He told her how Luke asked him about Rory and how Lane had ran up to him and yelled, "I knew you knew!" Then ran away.

There was whispered "I love you's" as they hung up and Rory smiled to herself as she went to sleep. It finally felt like things were right. She wasn't denying her feelings anymore. She wasn't hiding in a casual arrangement she didn't belong in in the first place. Her heart was in the right place and it was a good feeling.

When she woke up the next morning, she quickly showered and got dressed. Lorelai sat in the kitchen and obviously waited for her. "Luke's?"

"Yeah," she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face.

"You know, if you keep smiling like that, everyone's gonna know you're getting some," Lorelai pointed out.

Rory's eyes widened and her mother laughed. She shook her head. "I can't help it."

"I know, sweets," she said as she wrapped an arm around her daughter. "I get the same way about Luke. Trust me, you're not the only one."

Rory nodded in agreement as they made their walk to the center of town and to the diner. Lorelai's arm dropped from around the younger Gilmore and she looked over at her in wonderment.

As the diner approached, it became more obvious how happy she was. Lorelai had to admit she had never seen this before in Rory, not even with Dean. The bell chimed as always when they finally walked in and all patrons looked over to see them.

Luke stopped mid-pour and a small smile tugged at his lips as he saw Lorelai. She smiled back as Rory looked around for Jess. Babette and Miss Patty, seated together and staring, obviously had been here for just that.

"Coffee," Luke stated as he walked to them.

Lorelai kissed him quickly in greeting. "I love a man who knows he doesn't need to ask."

"Jess is upstairs," Luke told Rory when he noticed her searching expression.

She smiled thankfully at him. "I'm just - can I -"

"Yeah, go ahead," he told her, knowing what she had wanted to ask.

She nodded and headed for the curtain. Lorelai watched as she left. She hoped this weekend would be them, getting quality time they seemed to be lacking while she was busy with Yale. She walked with Luke to the counter seat she'd always occupied as he slid a full cup towards her. She smiled and took a sip.

Rory rapped lightly on the apartment door. There was no response so quietly, she pushed the door open. The first place her eyes landed was Jess' side of the room. He was asleep, she noticed. He looked so peaceful and she was almost afraid to wake him up. Yet she also wanted to try something.

Slowly, she tiptoed towards his bed. When she reached him, she got a better look at her boyfriend. He laid on his back, eyes closed, one arm underneath his pillow and the other hung off the side of the bed. Rory smiled to herself.

Even slower than her walk, she put one leg over his body and crawled on top. She didn't sit, not yet. As soon as he felt her weight on him, the surprise was ruined. Hopefully, he didn't feel the bed move and was in a deep sleep. She hoped.

Rory leaned forward and kissed the side of his face lightly. One, two, three. More soft kisses on his cheek. Jess moved his face slightly, obviously feeling her lips on him. She smiled and hid a silent giggle as she kissed him again. This time she sat on him, straddling him.

He definitely knew she was there now. Jess opened his eyes and this action did not cause Rory to stop or greet him. Instead, she moved her lips down to his neck. Jess made a sound and she smiled against his skin. He liked this way of waking up.

She finally leaned up again, taking the chance to look at his sleep ridden face. "Hi."

"Hi," he said back. "That's definitely a good morning hello."

She flushed. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too," he said.

Jess' hands moved up her arms and to her shoulders. He pushed her hair behind her ear and she leaned into his touch. "I wasn't sure if you were working this morning."

"Not this one," Jess shook his head. "Uncle Luke gave me the day off."

"Oh?" She said, trying to hide her excitement.

He nodded in return. "Which brings me yo my next topic. How would you like to go on a date with me?"

"A date?" She smiled.

"Yes, a date," he agreed.

"Like a real date?" She asked as her grin grew.

"I was playing on a fake date but maybe we could do a real one," he smirked.

Rory didn't give him a chance for reaction as she squealed, leaning forward. Her lips crashed to his happily and immediately they were overcome to more than a kiss. The fire inside scorched and he was kissing her back with everything he had.

Rory's hands grasped at his neck as his wrapped around her back, pulling her closer. She sank into him, causing another groan from him. Their joined mouths erased the sound of her moan as she felt him against her but it caused her to grip him tighter.

Neither stopped it or questioned it. It was barely even a thought that it was morning and a diner full of patrons was below them. The kiss erupted and before either could register what was happening, they were pulling his shirt over his head and hers followed. Jess' fingers played with her bra strap as she just kissed him harder.

It was that moment when the door opened and a scream was heard. "My eyes! My eyes!"

Rory quickly grabbed her shirt and pulled it over her head as she handed Jess his own. She climbed off of him and turned around to see her mother faced the door as if ready to leave and not that she had just walked in. When she looked over at her boyfriend again, he had his shirt on.

"It's safe to turn around now," Rory told her.

Lorelai slowly turned, hesitantly. When she saw they were dressed, she sighed in relief. "Did you get right to the action as soon as you came up here because you weren't even gone that long?"

Jess smirked and sat up in the bed and Rory stood there awkwardly, fixing her hair. She was trying not to think of what her mom might have walked in on had it been seconds later. "No, no -"

"She just found me irresistible, I guess," Jess interjected.

She looked behind her at him and gave him a ssh look. He just laughed.

Lorelai watched them. She wasn't sure she had ever seen Jess smile like that before. It both thrilled and scared her.

"Mom, was there something you or Luke needed?" Rory asked nervously.

"No," she smiled. "I just wondered if you wanted coffee too or if you planned on hanging out with Jess but I guess my own question was answered by what I walked in on, huh?"

"I want coffee," she replied. "That - that wasn't planned."

She heard Jess scoff playfully behind her but didn't turn. Lorelai kept her eyes on her daughter. She obviously was waiting for some blowout reaction from her.

"Do you want me to order you one now?" She asked. "Or do you want to, you know, stay here with Jess a little bit?"

"Order me one now," Rory answered. "And breakfast, too. I'll be down in a minute, I swear."

"All right," Lorelai replied skeptically.

"Really!" Rory replied to which Lorelai just rose her eyebrow. "Two minutes, tops."

"All right," she seemed more confident in her daughter's promise this time.

Lorelai headed out the door this time and as soon as she was gone, she heard laughter. With a quick turn, she looked over at Jess. "It's not that funny!"

"It's a little funny," he told her.

"You're not at all embarrassed that my mother walked in on us like that?" She put her hands on her hips.

He shrugged. "Not really, no."

She made a face. "It's nice to know you're okay with it. Me, I'm a little mortified."

Jess got out of the bed and laughed lightly as he walked to her. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Rory. She knows we're together."

"Knowing is a little different than seeing, isn't it?" She tried to joke.

"True," he smiled. "Look, don't worry about it. I'm sure there will be much more embarrassing moments for you in the future."

"Gee, thanks," Rory replied.

He kissed her forehead and she relaxed. "Go downstairs, drink your coffee, eat your breakfast. This will seem like a blimp on the day."

"And tonight is our date?" she asked.

"Eager, are we?" He teased. "Tonight."

"Okay," she smiled. "I'm gonna go. Are you coming down?"

"In a bit," he replied. "I think I'm gonna take a shower first."

"You know, I don't think anyone will catch us in there," she teased.

Jess found it hard to swallow. "What?"

Rory laughed. "God, you're easy."

"That's how you first got me," he joked and kissed her quickly.

"Okay I gotta go for real now," she kissed him again and backed away. "I'll see you, I guess."

"See you," he smirked.

Rory waved and headed out the door. She closed it behind her and took a few breaths. She was so in far in it with Jess, she couldn't believe it. She counted her breaths and when they finally came out normally, she walked down the stairs.

The looks she was given said a lot. People obviously made guesses on what Lorelai had been screaming about when she went up there. It was up in the air who guessed the winning answer.

With her head held high, Rory joined her mother and Luke poured her a cup of coffee. Of course he waited. Lorelai must have told him she might not return too soon. "Thanks."

Luke gave Rory a smile and a few minutes later, both the Gilmore girls had their food. Rory dove in, trying to avoid the looks she was being given. Lorelai looked over at her occasionally but said nothing.

"Rory, doll?" Babette called to her. She turned around to see her better from her stool. "You went up there to see that nephew of Luke's?"

"Uh, yeah," she said. "I did."

"And?" She urged.

"And he's awake," she added.

"And?"

"And what?"

"What did Lorelai walk in on?" Miss Patty leaned closer.

"Oh," Rory faltered. "Um…"

"It was stupid," Lorelai waved off. "I must have sprayed something in my eyes and they started burning really bad. Jess raced to get me water because I kept rubbing them but that just made it burn more -"

Luke stared at her curiously. Rory tried to hide her expression of thankfulness at trying to cover for her, even if it was a bad cover. "That's why you screamed?"

She nodded to Babette. "I really should have just stopped rubbing them. But let me tell you, I've learned my lesson."

Neither Babette or Miss Patty seemed to believe her. No one was surprised at that but no one pushed further either. When Jess walked down fifteen minutes later, all eyes were on him and what he did next.

The first thing he wanted to do when he walked down those stairs was kiss his girlfriend. Jess wasn't sure how open she was willing to be so instead he opted for sitting beside her. Rory smiled as he sat down and he smiled softly in return. The exchange took notice with the gossips in town but they said nothing this time.

The morning followed as this - Lorelai and Rory talked, Jess occasionally added something in. Luke poured them two more cups of coffee and when he wasn't busy working, he came over and added his own comments in. At one point, Jess put his arm around Rory as he leaned closer to her for a whisper. She whispered something back and almost immediately he moved his arm.

Everyone thought how the two of them looked quite cozy.

"I have to get to the inn," Lorelai said and broke the calm of the morning.

Rory turned to her with a frown. "But I thought you said Michel could take care of everything today."

"Ah, alas, my child, you cannot simply tell Michel to do something on short notice," she replied.

Jess watched her curiously. Rory opened her mouth then shut it. She knew Lorelai was right. "Okay. I'll see you later?"

"Of course," she said, only leaving out the duh. She kissed her daughter quickly on the cheek. "Bye."

"Bye, Mom," she said sadly.

"Bye, Luke!" Lorelai shouted and he came out of his kitchen to see her off. He kissed her goodbye and then she was out the door.

Jess turned to Rory mischievously. "So it looks like you're free today."

"It does seem so," she agreed.

"Maybe you'll consider spending the day with a certain person," he said casually. "A male someone. Dark hair. Reads."

Rory smiled. "I was thinking maybe I'd go see Lane, actually."

"Oh."

"It's just, we have tonight," she explained. "And I really want to see Lane."

"Nah, don't worry about it," he leaned away. "I understand."

"You do?" She worried and he nodded. "Thank you."

"But tonight you're all mine," he whispered as low as he could. She shivered.

"Deal," she agreed. She finished the last of her coffee and was ready to stand up. "I should go. Early might be better especially if I need time to get ready for tonight."

Jess smirked. "Okay. How about I walk you out?"

Rory glanced quickly behind her but especially to the table full of gossips. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. Not after what happened with Mom especially."

"That's fine," he shrugged. "But you know, it might throw them off if I kiss you goodbye anyway so."

"Oh," she said, realizing he just wanted a normal relationship goodbye. "I mean, I guess, if you want to, you can walk me there."

"Sounds good," he replied indifferently but she saw the end of his lip curve up in a small smile.

"Luke, thank you for breakfast," she called to him.

He came out of the kitchen and stood across from her at the counter. "You leaving?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I'm gonna go see Lane."

She stood up and Jess stood with her. Luke questioned, "And you're going to go see Lane too?"

"No, I'm just walking her out," he said and put his hand on the small of Rory's back as she paid and they headed out the door.

"Something is definitely happening between them," Miss Patty commented when they left.

…...

Once out of the diner's vision, Rory put her arm in between Jess' arm and his body, linking them together. He smiled softly at her and kissed her hair. She snuggled closer as they walked in step together to Lane's house.

"I like this," she commented.

"Me, too," he said.

"I wish every moment was like this," Rory continued. "That we could just be me and you and not worry about anyone else."

"Is that why we're not telling the gossip train back at the diner?" He asked with a smirk but obviously he meant it seriously.

Rory laughed. "If they know, they're gonna watch onto it and never leave us alone."

"What would be wrong with that?" He asked curiously. "We could walk like this anywhere, I could kiss you goodbye. It wouldn't be that bad, would it?"

"No," she said sadly.

"Then what's wrong?" He nudged. "You want this, right?"

"Of course I do," Rory was surprised he would even have to wonder that.

Jess shook his head then turned to look at her. They stopped walking and her arm slid from his. "Then what is it? Tell me. I just want to know."

Rory sighed. "This town, these people, they're protective of me. They watched me with my first boyfriend and they watched me after we broke up. They told me I'd do better than him despite that they liked him."

"I'm still not seeing the problem," he frowned.

"I don't want them do that to you," she replied. "I don't want them look at you and think I can do better. I know what I can do and I love you. I don't want to do better than you."

Jess smiled down at her. "I can handle it. Trust me and besides, so what anyway? Let them think what they want. I don't care."

"Really?" She gave a small smile in return at his words.

"Really," he answered. "I love you, Rory and I don't give a shit what they or anyone else thinks. I don't wanna hide this."

"Me, either," her smile grew.

"So what are we doing then?" Jess snaked his arms around her waist.

Rory pretended to think as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "We're not hiding."

He didn't need any further comments. Jess leaned down towards his girlfriend and captured her lips with his. His teeth took in her bottom lip and she almost cried with anticipation.

The two of them melted into each other. It was if they became one and neither cared where they were. They still had a little bit to walk to Lane's house and an audience could easily see them. It suddenly didn't matter if anyone saw.

Rory pulled away first, eyes closed and a smile playing on her lips. "I like this goodbye much better."

"It's a good thing I came then, isn't it?" He smirked back.

"Very," she nodded. "Come on. Let's go."

"Yes, ma'am," he laughed as she placed her arm beside his again and they walked together towards their destination.

…..

Lane must have seen Rory coming. She opened the door widely and instantly took note of their coupley stance. She squealed in delight.

"I knew it!" She yelled happily.

Rory laughed and ducked her head down. Jess watched her out of the corner of his eye, a smile tugging his lips again. He loved how shy she got.

"I guess you know then?" Rory asked.

"Please," she scoffed. "Jess here wouldn't tell me a thing but I was suspicious of him. And you two aren't exactly hiding it all joined together like that."

"Good," Jess said.

"We're trying not to hide it," she said then turned to her boyfriend. "Not anymore."

Lane squealed again. "I need details! Tell me everything."

"I think this is the part where I leave," Jess told the girls.

Rory pouted. "You sure?"

"Yeah, you do whatever you two are gonna do," he untangled himself from her. "I'm gonna maybe see if Luke needs any extra help."

"Okay," she frowned. "But tonight right?"

"Tonight," he agreed and kisses her quickly goodbye. Lane's expression turned happy fangirl when she saw.

Jess began to walk away but Rory called out after him. "Wait! What do I wear?"

"Just dress casual," he shrugged.

"Casual?" Another frown. "I hate that word."

He smirked. "Just dress as you, all right?"

Rory nodded but wasn't finished. "I love you."

"I know," he said, which made her laugh at the Han Solo side of him. "See you later."

Jess officially turned around and headed back to the diner. Rory turned to Lane who had a thousand questions on her face. "What?"

"As much as I want to start with the I love you being so casually said," Lane replied. "I feel like I need to know when exactly this happened."

"How much time you got?" Rory grinned as her friend let her inside the house and she began to tell the story of the past week.


	30. Date Night

A/N: sorry this is so late! I'm trying to get my groove back I swear! I hope you like this and thanks for being so patient.

"What about this one?"

Lorelai and Lane watched Rory as they sat seated on her bed. The girl in particular was pulling the dress down a little to cover more of her legs to which Lorelai made a face.

"It looks like he's already seen you naked," she commented.

"Lane?" She asked for a second opinion.

"Little bit," Lane replied.

Rory groaned and looked through her pile of options. She held a long sleeved black dress up over herself. "What about this one?"

"Like you're trying to not look like he's seen you naked," Lorelai said.

"These are your outfits, Mom," Rory told her.

"Well, that explains it," she shrugged.

Lane leaned closer. "What else is in the pile?"

Rory turned to look through them. "Nothing's right. I don't know what to wear."

"There's got to be something," Lorelai said. "You're the girl who helped Paris Gellar get ready for a date. How can you not help yourself?"

"I don't know," she sighed as she sank into her chair. "Maybe because it's Jess?"

"Shouldn't that make it easier?" Lane asked. They both waited for her to expand. "Because you're already a couple, you've already said I love you, you've even slept together. There's no pressure."

"It feels like there's still pressure," Rory replied. "I can't explain it. This is - it's our first real date. I want it to be special."

"It's gonna be special no matter what you wear, sweets," Lorelai told her. "Because as cheesy as it sounds, you love Jess so whatever happens will be worth it."

She nodded. "You're right."

"Of course I'm right," she said almost offended.

"Okay," Rory stood up. "So help me pick."

…

"That's what you're wearing?" Luke asked Jess as he passed him when he entered the apartment.

Jess looked down at his clothes. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"It's so casual," he commented.

"Good because I was going for that," he said.

Luke almost rolled his eyes. "You nervous?"

"I've been on a date before, Uncle Luke," he smirked.

"Not with Rory you haven't," he said.

"Me and Rory have had 'friend dates'," Jess held up quotation marks as he said friend dates.

"But not actual dates," Luke replied.

"It's not a big difference," he resisted the urge to say something sarcastic about how they can be more than friendly.

"Jess," Luke sighed. "I know you and Rory - you two have, you've done things - things I don't want to hear about or think about. But she's not just another girl and she deserves so much."

"I know," he agreed. "Trust me."

"Do you know?" He countered.

"I love her," Jess said instead of answering. "I love Rory. She's important to me. She has been ever since I met her. I'm not going into this with the intention of screwing it up somehow."

"No one does," Luke said.

Jess nodded. "I plan on holding onto her. We spent months denying how we felt and I know I did some stupid things but that's over."

"Good," Luke nodded too. "Because it'd be a little awkward to have to kick my own nephew's ass."

…..

Jess arrived at the Gilmore house around 7:30. He knocked lightly on the door, knowing he didn't have to knock harder. Lorelai and Rory were probably looking at him as soon as he arrived.

The door opened quickly to reveal a rushed Lorelai. "Hi, Jess."

He nodded courteously. "Ma'am."

She gave him a look but didn't comment. "Rory will be right out. She kind of pushed me to get the door."

Jess wasn't sure what to say. He felt a little awkward. Sure, he had talked to Lorelai before. But right now, standing in her doorway and about to go in a date with her daughter, he was speechless.

"So," Lorelai tried. It was obvious she felt a little awkward, too. "How's work?"

"Work is good," he answered. "Uncle Luke's a good boss."

"Really?" He nodded. "You can tell me the truth if he isn't. I may have some sway."

Jess smirked slightly. "Nah. I think I'm good. Besides, he's good about when to give me shifts now that I'm gonna be starting classes."

"Classes?" Lorelai crossed her arms. "I didn't know you were taking classes."

Jess realized he just dropped the bomb early in the night and to the wrong Gilmore. "They haven't started yet."

"What kind of classes?" She wondered.

He shrugged noncommittally. "Just a few night classes."

"What about night classes?" Rory asked as she walked into the room.

Both Jess and Lorelai turned to look at her. She wore a knee length dress, blue, with quarter sleeves. It was a casual dress more than fancy and if she judged by his reaction, she made the right choice.

"Wow," he said.

"You think?" She asked as she looked down at herself.

Jess nodded. "I think."

"And I think the young gazes are my cue to leave," Lorelai teased.

She backed out of the room with a thumbs up to Rory and was gone. Once they were alone, his girlfriend asked again about the question she wondered. "What were you saying about night classes?"

He looked down bashfully then back up. "I applied for a few classes to help with my writing."

A smile burst on her face. "Your writing! What are you writing? Do I get to read it?"

"One, it's barely anything yet and two, eventually, yeah," he replied.

"That's so exciting!" She hugged him tightly.

Jess wrapped his arms around her. "It's only a couple nights a week."

"But it's big," she said as she pulled back. "When were you going to tell me?"

"Tonight," he promised.

She frowned at him. "Did I ruin the surprise?"

"Nah, my big mouth did," he waved it off.

"It's true!" Lorelai shouted from the other room.

"Mom!" Rory said then laughed. "I guess she's listening huh?"

"'S okay," he said. "We should get going anyway."

"Right," she agreed.

Jess put his arm around her and they led each other outside. She was stunned as she noticed their ride.

"Oh my god," she gasped.

"Is it too much?" He asked.

"No," Rory shook her head as she stared at the carriage in front of her, Kirk included. "It's definitely not too much."

Jess let out a small laugh. "You can admit if it is."

He led her to the carriage by the hand and Rory climbed in when they reached it. "No. It's my date and I say it's not too much."

"If you say so," he smiled and got himself in beside her.

"Where to, my lord?" Kirk asked from up front.

"To the theatre," Jess replied simply.

"Yes, sir," Kirk said as they began to move.

Rory leaned into Jess as they rode. "The only thing that could make this better is if there was snow."

…..

"Say anything?"

Rory turned to Jess who stood behind her as she checked the movie. "Is that okay?"

"It's great," she smiled.

"But not what you had planned?" He asked.

"Movies wasn't what I thought," she admitted sheepishly. "But I like it and it's a normal date activity."

"Normal date activity?" He wondered.

"For people actually going on a first date who haven't already...You know," she implied.

Jess chuckled at that. "Right. Normal date activity."

"But I love it," Rory wrapped her arms around his waist. "And I love you."

She kissed him softly and he smiled. "I had other ideas but nothing seemed right, you know?"

"This is perfect," Rory shook her head to his words. "Come on. Let's go inside. It's freezing."

Jess nodded and rubbed her arms up and down as they entered the theater. Once they were indoors, Rory instantly made sure they got the couch. He sat beside her and put an arm around her from the back as she held the tub of popcorn.

"Good date so far?"

"Perfect."

Rory leaned into him just as she had in the carriage as the they got ready for the movie and the rest of the night.

…..

After the movie, Jess and Rory sat at the bridge. He had given her his jacket after she convinced him to not change his plans just because it was cold. He had agreed as long as they would go inside if the cold got too much.

"I like this picnic," she smiled at her boyfriend.

"It's nothing, really," he shrugged nonchalantly.

"Don't be modest," she said. "Most people think dates need fancy meals. You, however, know I prefer burgers so thank you."

"I didn't think you'd want to eat some expensive meal you wouldn't normally have interest in eating," Jess said.

She nodded as she picked up a fry and placed in her mouth.. "And you were right."

Jess watched her, a smile tugged on his lips. He had been on a lot of dates in his life. Some had been more than he could afford, trying to impress some girls who found his bank account less than impressive. But being here with Rory, he was happy. There was no pressure and he could just be. If he hadn't been so sure he loved her already, tonight would have told him so.

"What?" She asked, noticing him watching her.

He ducked his head, a smile on his face. "Nothing."

"Jess?" She tried. "Tell me."

"I love you," he said. "I'm just thinking about how much."

She smiled, a hint of blush almost. "You always know the right things to say."

"Not always," he disagreed. "I do have something else to tell you, though."

"What?"

"You know those classes I mentioned earlier?"

Rory nodded. "What about them?"

"They're at a small community college," he continued. "Not here."

"Oh," she said, surprised. "Well, where is it then?"

"Hartford."

"Hart -" she began then stopped. "Your classes are in Hartford?"

"Is that okay?" Jess worried. "I was thinking maybe I could drive down, we could have lunch sometimes or dinner before my class -"

"Oh my god," she exclaimed as Rory moved from her seat and into his lap. She hugged Jess tightly. "Are you serious? Of course it's okay. I get to see you more often?"

Jess held his arms around her and smiled into her neck. "I'm gonna take this to mean you're happy."

"Hell yes I'm happy," she beamed.

Rory moved out of the hug and kissed him. It was short, rushed excited kisses at first. The kisses turned more passionate as she readjusted herself in his lap. A whimper escaped her lips and he held her tighter.

When they broke apart, Jess leaned his forehead against his girlfriend's. He gave her another small kiss and unwrapped his arms from around her.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"I am being a gentleman," he replied.

Rory seemed confused. "Why?"

"Because I'm trying to make this date as normal as possible," he answered. "And call me old fashioned but maybe I should take you home."

"Oh," she stood up.

Jess followed her lead and stood facing her. "It's stupid right?"

"No," she told him. "It's sweet and I appreciate it. But do you think maybe - that you can stay with me tonight? We don't have to do anything. I just…"

"What?"

"I sleep better when you're next to me."

"Sure," he agreed without question. "Of course."

"Thank you," Rory said.

Jess hugged her and she let out a small laugh. "What's so funny?"

"This feels a little backwards, doesn't it?"

And so he laughed, too.

…..

Later that night, in Lorelai's house, Jess and Rory laid fast asleep in her bed. They were both on their sides, her back to his front. Arms laid on top of the covers with fingers interlocked. Lorelai snuck a peek at the two of them and smiled to herself.

Ever so quietly, she shut the door behind her and went back up to her bedroom.


	31. In Stars Hollow

"Up and at 'em, kids!" Lorelai banged on the door as she yelled. "Unless you're already, you know, up and at 'em."

She heard a distinct male laughter on the other side which abruptly stopped right before the door opened. Rory glared at her mother in the morning light. "Is that really how you want to awake your only child?"

"Yes," she grinned. "Though in my defense, I suggested you were already awake."

Rory rolled her eyes and was about to shut the door again before Lorelai stopped it. "Yes?"

"Come out here a second?" She asked seriously.

Rory risked a look over at a curious Jess then back to her mother. "Yeah, sure."

She grabbed her robe to go over her pajamas and shut the door behind her. She didn't look back to see what Jess' reaction read. Lorelai patted the seat across from where she stood before sitting down herself.

"I think we need to have a little talk," she began.

"Why do I get the feeling I know exactly what this talk is about?" Rory questioned.

Lorelai half-smiled. "Because you do know."

"Jess," she nodded.

"I just have a few concerns," she defended.

Rory continued nodding. "And?"

"And I wanna make sure you don't get hurt," she went on.

"I won't," Rory smiled. "I know I can't predict the future and there's every chance in the world we might not last but right now, it's right. I know it's what everyone my age says but it's true."

"You are right when you say it's what everyone your age says," Lorelai agreed. "Honey, I just don't want you hurt again. You spent months sad over this guy and you didn't even tell me it was him until Dean said it -"

"Is that what this is really about?" She wondered. "That I didn't tell you?"

"No," she said surprised. "Not at all."

"I know how sad I was," she sighed. "I know we hurt each other and yes, both of us. I know some things happened and we can't change it, either. But I love him and I don't want to not be with him, you know? Even if we do break up, I want to have given this a chance."

Lorelai nodded at her daughter. "When did you get so smart?"

"I'm a Yale college student," she said. "What can I say?"

Lorelai laughed. "But just so you know, I'm still looking out for you."

"I know," she smiled. "And I appreciate it. Really."

"Good," she said. "One more thing, though."

"What's that?"

"Are these sleepovers going to be a common thing?"

Rory almost laughed. "What?"

Lorelai nodded her head towards her daughter's bedroom. "Jess staying over. In your room, in your bed. Is this going to happen everytime you visit?"

"I...I don't know," she wanted to blush.

Her mother eyed her suspiciously. "That was a dirty mind look. Do I want to know? No, wait. Don't answer that."

"I don't really know," Rory answered honestly. "Me and him is new and now that I know he's gonna be spending more time in New Haven, I don't know how it'll be here."

"Wait, back up," she held her hand up. "Jess is spending more time in New Haven?"

"Remember those night classes he mentioned?" Her mom nodded. "They're at a community college up there."

"Oh, wow," Lorelai seemed surprised. "That's great. Really great. You'll see each other more often."

"I'm really happy about it," she admitted. "He's so smart, Mom. These classes could be so good for him."

Lorelai watched her daughter, observing. "You really are in love with him, aren't you?"

Rory made a confused face. "I told you I was."

"But I'm really seeing it now," she said softly with a small smile. "I see it in your face, your words."

She frowned now. "Is that a good thing?"

"We'll find out, I guess," she teased as she stood up and kissed her daughter on the head. "Come on. Get the boyfriend up. We're getting breakfast."

When she was out of the room, Rory sat in thought. Finally, she stood up and went back to her bedroom to wake up Jess.

…..

Jess walked slowly behind the two Gilmore girls. The two of them talked as they walked, quickly in both pace and breaths. He couldn't keep up with their conversation so instead he trailed behind and let them talk.

As he was watching his steps, he felt someone suddenly beside him. This person looped their arm through his and snuggled close.

"You're being quiet," Rory said.

Jess looked up and gave his girlfriend a small smile. "Didn't want to interrupt the conversation."

"You wouldn't be interrupting," she told him. "I want you to be a part of the group."

"Does it include matching tattoos?" He asked. "Because I have a suggestion where you can put yours."

"Dirty!" Lorelai coughed in front of them, obviously having heard his comment.

Rory hit him playfully. "Come on. Interact."

"I'm interacting," Jess said then called to her mother. "Aren't I interacting, Ms. Gilmore?"

"If you're gonna call me Ms. Gilmore then I'm gonna suggest my daughter break up with you," Lorelai replied.

"She's kidding," Rory explained.

"Only a little," Lorelai shrugged as she turned to face the younger generation. "I don't accept Ms or ma'am. I do, however accept queen, goddess, beauty and Angelina Jolie."

"What?" Jess said.

Rory shook her head with a smile and Lorelai turned back around to continue the walk to the diner. "For me? Please."

"Oh, no," he warned as she began to pout. "Not the lower lip. You are not Bambi eyes-ing me. No."

Rory kept her pout going in full effect with the eyes. "Please please please. Be a good boy and get to know my mom?"

Lorelai chucked. "I'd do it if I were you. It sounds like she might give you a treat."

"Dirty," Rory said exasperated.

The tone didn't affect her mother. "Thank you."

"Fine," Jess said. "But I'm doing it for you."

"Thank you!" She jumped up and kissed him on the cheek. "I love you."

He shook his head with an eye roll, pretending to be annoyed when he really found her adorable. "Yeah, yeah. I love you, too."

"Love," Lorelai began to sing. "I get so lost sometimes. Days pass -"

"What are you doing?" Rory asked her.

"Singing," she answered in her normal voice then continued her song. "And emptiness fills my heart -"

"She knows what we saw last night?" Jess questioned.

"I may have told her," Rory said sheepishly.

"When I want to run away," Lorelai spun around to look at them and walked backwards. "I drive off in my car. But whichever way I go, I come back to the place you are."

"Jeez," Jess muttered.

Rory smiled into his shoulder as they kept walking. Her mother singing still.

"In your eyes!" She held her fist up triumphantly. "The light, the heat! In your eyes! I am complete!"

"What the hell is going on out here?"

Lorelai half jumped with a scream as she turned around. "Hey, honey."

Luke watched her curiously. "What are you doing?"

"I was singing," she admitted.

"I noticed," he said. "Why?"

"It's for the kids," she reached her arms in the direction of Rory and Jess.

Luke nodded. "Of course it is."

"Come on, let's go eat," Lorelai instructed as she walked the steps to the diner door and went inside.

Jess looked at Rory. "Okay, that part was funny."

She giggled and they followed Luke inside. They sat down at the same table as Lorelai. Jess pulled out a chair for Rory which made the diner patrons aww. He glared at them as he sat down himself.

"Lukey, why don't you pull out my chair?" Lorelai pouted.

"Because if I did, you'd ask me why I did," he replied.

"Truly a match," Rory commented with a smile.

"Breakfast?" He asked the three of them. They ordered their meals with coffee and Luke was gone in a flash to give the order.

"What time are you working today, Jess?" Lorelai asked him.

"Eleven to seven," he told her.

"Seven?" Rory wondered. "But I go back to Yale tonight. I won't get to see you?"

"You can hang out here for a bit," he bumped her knee with his own.

Rory pouted now and Lorelai chimed in. "This just opens up the day for us girls then. What should we do?"

She quickly recovered as she began to name random errands she could do or movies they needed to watch together. Jess smiled at her as she talked animatedly about preparing for the Chilton student's arrival tomorrow.

Luke returned with their food and they each dug right in. Plans for the day and night were made and everyone eased into a joined conversation. Even the other customers in the diner went back to their own conversations.

…..

When Lane walked into the diner for her usual shift, Jess knew he was about to be asked questions. He figured date questions and maybe a threat to be good to Rory were guaranteed at this point so he was ready.

But she surprised him. She didn't ask anything. Politely, Lane told him hello and asked how he was and went right to work. It had really started to bug Jess how she was treating him coldly. He had actually considered Lane a friend so he didn't understand what was going on.

Finally, it got to be too much so when she came behind the counter after giving out an order, he asked her. "What's going on? You mad at me or something?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," she replied.

"Sometimes I think we get along," he said. "We talk at work, you support me and Rory being together, maybe we're even friends but today that doesn't seem to be the case. Wanna explain?"

Lane crossed her arms. "Are you leaving here?"

"What?" He was surprised that was what she asked. "No. Why would I be leaving?"

"I saw Rory today," she explained. "She said something about New Haven."

"Right," he nodded. "The classes. She told you?"

"Was she not supposed to?" She questioned.

"No, no, she can tell you whatever she wants," Jess backtracked. "I guess I'm just surprised she did."

"So you're not quitting here and moving out there to be closer to her and your classes?" Asked Lane.

"Even if I wanted to, I don't really have the money to go get a place up there," Jess told her.

To his surprise even more, Lane hugged him. When she pulled away, she patted him in a friendly gesture. "Well, okay."

"That's it?" He asked. "Well okay?"

"Well, okay, I'm not mad anymore," Lane added.

Jess let out a laugh. "All that ignorance you gave me easily solved just like that?"

"Just like that," she nodded.

"Oh, man," he sighed. "I should have just asked sooner."

Lane laughed. "Oh, boy, do you have things to learn about women."

She shook her head, with a laugh still and walked away.

Jess walked to his uncle and leaned against the counter. "I think me and Lane are friends."

"You finally figured it out," he noted.

"Is it weird to be friends with your girlfriend's best friend and not just because she's your girlfriend's best friend?" He wondered.

Luke shook his head. "No."

"Really?"

"Exhibit A."

Luke pointed at a table and Jess' eyes followed their direction. Sookie sat at a table, obviously on a lunch break to see her husband and new baby. The older man walked away, his point made, and Jess stood there. Maybe this new friendship wasn't so crazy after all.

…..

"Are you excited to meet this student?" Lorelai asked as she and Rory walked through the town, bags in hand.

"Excited and nervous," she said. "I've never had responsibility over another person before. What if I mess up?"

"Then you are asking the right person," she said as her arm slipped around her daughter's. "I took responsibility over you without knowing how to and look how you turned out."

Rory rolled her eyes jokingly. "Maybe I should ask someone else."

"Hey," she said. "I take offense to that."

"I love you but I don't know if you can help me watch a wandering teenager on a college campus," Rory told her.

"This wouldn't be a problem if you let me wander the college campus," she said. "Then I'd know the hangouts and where to go."

"Yes, that is an idea," she nodded. "But who will you watch you?"

"I don't need watching, thank you very much," she said.

Rory laughed. "If you say so."

"So what are you going to do about Jess?" She asked.

"Jess?" Rory frowned. She didn't know where this change in conversation came from. "What about him?"

"When the girl comes," she nudged her daughter. "I mean, if he visits, obviously she's not gonna stay in the room with the two of you while you bow chicka wow wow."

"Definitely not," she said. "And it's a non issue because Jess is working. I doubt he'll be there long if he visits."

"No quickies?" She asked. "Gee, and I thought you guys would be like bunnies."

Lorelai grinned as Rory metaphorically picked her jaw off the ground. "No quickies. No bunnies. Now who's dirty?"

"Both of us because we're sleeping with men in the same family?" Lorelai suggested.

"And this has officially taken a weird turn," Rory responded.

"Oh, come on, you know I'm teasing you," she told her.

"I know," nodded Rory. "It's just - I don't want you think that's all we do. All he's here for."

"Honey, I don't think that."

"You used to."

"I didn't know him then," she said. "I didn't see you guys together."

"He really does love me," Rory felt the need to defend.

"I know," Lorelai agreed.

"Mom?"

"Yeah, kid?"

"Do you really think I'm ready to help students?" She wondered, her thoughts trailed back to their previous conversation. "I'm afraid I'll be a failure and they won't give me responsibility again."

"You will do great," she said. "Trust me. I know you, kid, I know you can do something like this."

"Thanks, Mom," she smiled.

"Anytime," she smiled back. "I do have one more question regarding people in your life and how it will be with this girl around."

"You may ask," Rory told her.

Lorelai stopped walking and faced her daughter with her most serious face. "What did Paris say about a Chilton student staying in your dorm?"

…..

"Six fifty-nine!" Rory exclaimed as she walked into the diner happily. She looked around and her bright smile frowned. "Luke, where's Jess?"

"He's upstairs," he pointed to the curtain. "I already sent him up."

"Can I?"

"Go ahead."

"Thanks."

Rory headed to the stairs hidden behind the curtain. She ignored the looks she got from Miss Patty and Babette, who if she thought about it, seemed like they had been waiting for her to arrive. She shook her head and headed up.

With a few knocks on the door, she realized it was open. Hesitantly, Rory pushed it open and looked around. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw a shirtless Jess standing beside his bed. His hands were on his jeans as if he was about to take them off.

He noticed her stare and smirked. "Hey."

"What?" She shook her head again, out of her daze. "Hi."

"You're staring," he commented. "Not that I mind but it's just - wow, you're really staring."

"Sorry," she laughed. "It's just - I feel like I never really appreciated being able to look at you before."

"And?"

"And you're beautiful."

"Huh."

"Don't huh me," she warned. "You once stood me in front of a mirror at Yale, in nothing more than a bedsheet and called me beautiful. I think I've earned the right."

"Fine," he smiled at the memory. "You win. I'm beautiful."

"Thank you," she replied and finally began to walk towards him. "Hi."

"You said that already," he kept smiling.

"It deserved repeating," she told him.

Jess kissed Rory lightly on the lips. "I feel like I haven't seen you all day."

"That's because you haven't," she teased. "I'm sorry. Me and my mom got kind of caught up. We didn't come back with the lunch crowd."

"That's all right," he shrugged. "I got to figure out why Lane was so upset with me though."

"Lane was upset with you?" She asked.

"I'll tell you later," he said. "Right now, I wanna kiss my girlfriend I haven't seen since breakfast."

"Should I go before she gets here?" She teased.

Jess pulled her flush against him, his bare chest against her clothes. "Come here."

He kissed her not so softly anymore. This kiss was almost rough, it was passionate. Their tongues mixed and lower lips were bit in the heat of the moment. Jess' hands trailed down to her butt, squeezing it through her jeans. She groaned as her own hands swept his shoulder muscles, down his own back.

Jess couldn't take it, he lifted her up. Rory's legs wrapped around his waist as he hoisted her. Before they knew it, he had backed her to a wall, her back pressed to the wood panels. Jess' lips attacked hers, leading down her neck and to the top of her shirt.

"Oh, God," she moaned as her eyes closed and she felt him harden against her legs.

"I want you so fucking bad," he told her in such a husky voice she was surprised she didn't just melt right then.

"Me too," her lips went to his again. Mouths attacked at full speed, her hand held onto his neck. His hands held her up by the bottom but his mouth kissed her shirt, over her bra and she knew her nipppes would harden at the proximity.

"When I came in -" she breathed out between moans. "What were you doing?"

He stopped kissing her just to answer. "I was going to take a shower."

"Oh," she said. "Take me with you."

"What?"

"You heard me."

Jess nodded and with another kiss that left both of them panting, he unattached Rory from the wall and carried her to the bathroom. He put her down to shut the door and as soon as he turned back around, she reached up to kiss him again.

His fingers made quick work of her shirt. It was off within seconds and soon follows her jeans in a pile on the floor. She turned in the shower water and as she did, Jess stood behind her, kissing her neck. She closed her eyes and let him.

His hands swept her hair aside, giving close attention to her right side. At the same time, his hands came up from behind her, cupping her breasts and giving them their own squeeze. Her heart beat sped up, enjoying the feel of his hands as her arm reached behind her to hold him to her.

With his mouth, he let her bra straps slip down. Jess undid the back and tossed it aside, finally able to give the attention he wanted to to her breasts. His fingers thumbed over her nipples, causing her to pull him closer. "Jess…"

Jess smirked at his name coming from her lips especially while she was like this. He turned her around and kissed her mouth with as much fever as he had against the wall. Her small fingers reached down to unzip his jeans then she slid them down once they were open.

He stepped out of them, mouths never disconnecting from hers. Each of them peeled off their remaining items of clothing, climbing into the tub. As soon as they were under the water, Rory kissed him again. His hands traveled down, to her breasts again, to her navel. It went further and she moaned so loudly he had to kiss harder so Luke or other diner customers wouldn't hear.

She lifted a leg to wrap it around his hip. Jess almost hissed at the contact and it made him want her even more. She beamed at the sound. He grabbed her face in his hands and kissed her harder.

…

Jess shut off the water and handed Rory a towel. She looked at it suspiciously but wrapped it around herself. "Is this your towel?"

He nodded. "I got an extra somewhere. I just need to find it.'

"And what are you going to use?" She asked.

"I'll look in the buff," he smirked.

She blushed, risking a glance to his naked body and remembered what just happened mere seconds ago in Luke's shower of all places.

"I wasn't planning on taking a shower," she said.

"I'd be surprised if you had planned it," another smirk. If he kept it up, she would have to ask for a repeat.

"I mean, I have nothing to wear then," she said. "I don't want to put my clothes back on now."

"So don't," he shrugged.

"What?"

"I knew it was here," he grabbed a towel out and wrapped it around his waist before opening the door of the bathroom. "I'll lend you clothes."

"Won't it be obvious?" She asked innocently. "About what we did?"

"Sweetheart, you came up here with a diner full of people downstairs then the shower turned on," he grinned. "I think they know."

She blushed furiously. "Oh."

"Plus you weren't exactly quiet," he smirked as they walked out to his part of the apartment.

"Oh, God," she groaned.

"Don't worry," he said. "My mouth worked hard on silencing you."

"Your mouth was part of why it happened, too," she accused.

"Damn straight," he smirked. "Come on."

"You're really giving me your clothes?" Rory almost laughed.

"Instead of telling you that you could put your own clothes back on and take another shower, I figure I'm better off just going along with it," he simply replied.

She beamed. "Have I told you how much I love you?"

"Not in the past ten seconds," he said and slinked his arms around her.

"I love you," she said.

"I had a feeling," Jess smiled down at her and kissed her.

"We have to get dressed," she said as soon as they broke apart.

"Dressed, right," he agreed.

He grabbed clothes out for each of them, which she quickly pulled on. She unwrapped the towel as fast as she could and threw the t-shirt on. "Done."

Jess was only pulling on his boxers and wearing a shirt. "You just put it right on?"

"Yep."

"What about underwear?"

"None," she said with a tint to her cheeks.

"Fuck," he whispered. "You're really testing my resolve right now, Gilmore."

"Agree to come with me to school when I leave and maybe I'll test it some more," she teased.

"You want me to drive you down there?" He asked.

"Or follow in your car," she backtracked.

"I'd be more than happy to take you," he told her.

"Really?" She beamed.

"Really," he agreed.

Just as she leaned in to kiss him again, the door knocked once then opened. Rory jumped away from Jess and faced the new person in the room.

"What's going on up here?" Luke asked. He seemed as calm as he could be which didn't mean much because there was anger etched over his face.

"Rory spilled something on her clothes," Jess told him. "And she got sticky so she wanted to take a shower. I told her no at first but then she did the pout because she wanted to be clean and I couldn't say no."

Luke eyed him suspiciously. "I don't believe you but I'm gonna pretend that's the truth."

"That's good with me," Jess nodded.

Rory nodded in agreement. "Me, too."

"Good," Luke agreed. "Because whatever happened - I don't wanna know."

"That's good because nothing happened but a soda spill," Jess said.

"Right," he said. "Rory, I think maybe you should come downstairs. Eat something."

"I actually think I'm gonna go home," she said.

Rory rushed to the bathroom and gathered her clothes she came in. Jess followed her to hand her a bag to put them in and she smiled gratefully at him. "I'll call you later?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "When we leave."

"Right."

Rory kissed him quick and walked past him back to Luke. "Bye, Luke."

"Bye, Rory," he said and she was out the door without a goodbye to Jess. He grabbed his own clothes from the bathroom and threw them in the hamper.

"What?"

"Let's drop the act now," Luke said. "Rory's gone and I really don't want to know what exactly happened up here."

"Then you won't," He replied.

"But," Luke held a finger up. "You can bet we're gonna have a talk about it. A long talk. Rules and regulations talk."

"Got it," he said.

"I mean it."

"And I got it."

"I'm serious."

"I know."

"Jess."

"Uncle Luke."

Luke sighed. "Fine. I give up."

He headed to the door and opened it. With one more shake of his head, he went back downstairs. Jess, on the other hand, sat on his bed, a smile in place.

…..

"I'm home!"

Rory announced as she walked in the door. Lorelai turned around on the couch. "I thought you were only going for a quick visit."

"It was...a visit," Rory said as she tried to rush to her room.

Before she made it there however, her mom noticed her clothes. "What are you wearing?"

"Clothes," Rory answered.

Lorelai shook her head. "Those are not the clothes you left in. In fact, they look a little like...Are those Jess' clothes?!"

"Ssh," Rory hushed.

"Why are you wearing Jess' clothes?" She asked.

"Because I didn't have an extra pair," she headed towards her bedroom.

Lorelai followed. "And why did you need a change of clothes?"

Rory turned to face her. "I took a shower, okay? It wasn't intentional.'

Instead of getting mad or frustrated, Lorelai laughed once. "Honey, you know, showers are meant to get you clean, not dirtier."

With a groan she went in her room and shut the door. "I'm not talking about this!"

"On the contrary, my dear," Lorelai said through the door. "I have plenty to say."

"I'm not listening," Rory shouted so she would hear.

Lorelai didn't say anything else. Instead, she waited. When Rory opened the door, dressed in her own pants but still Jess' t-shirt, her mother had turned serious.

"I just have one question," she said. "Tiny. Three words."

Rory nodded. "Okay."

She took a deep breath. "Were you safe?"

"Yes," she answered honestly. "We were. We always are."

Lorelai let out the breath. "Okay. That's all I needed to hear, then."

"Okay."

"Now let's go watch Showgirls because I got the special edition with the shot glasses and we can't let that go to waste."

"Lead the way."

 **A/N: happy holiday season everyone!**


	32. But not as cute as a Pushkin

**A/N: Happy New Year, everyone! Thanks for sticking with me 3**

Jess looked over at Rory again. She had been quiet since they left Stars Hollow some time ago. The ride to New Haven wasn't too bad but the silence was killing him. He didn't know what was wrong but he needed to know before the drive was completed.

"We should take a road trip," he casually suggested.

Rory's head turned to her boyfriend, a look of surprise on her face. "What?"

"A road trip," he shrugged. "Just me and you. What do you say?"

"I say I have school and you have your classes," she replied. "Plus it's cold out. Do you really want to road trip when it's freezing?"

"I was thinking we'd do it in the summer," he looked over at her, smirk tugged on his mouth. "Plus I wouldn't mind you wearing really short shorts, legs on the dashboard…"

"Hmm," she considered. "So road trip, not at all an idea just to get me alone with you or apparently for me to wear shorts?"

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to get you alone," Jess admitted.

"You already get me alone," she said.

"But wouldn't it be fun to go out and travel?" He asked her.

"What's going on?" She asked, a worried look on her face.

Jess looked over at her quickly then back at the road. "I was gonna ask you the same thing."

"So the road trip thing?"

"It got you talking."

"Huh."

"I thought that was my line," he teased.

"Jess, nothing's wrong," she shook her head. "I'm just...thinking."

"You've been silent for fifteen miles," Jess pointed out. "That sounds like some serious thinking for a Gilmore if it includes not talking."

She sighed. "My mom said something before we left."

"What did she say?" He wondered. Now it was his turn to sound worried.

"It was stupid," Rory said. "And it got my mind paranoid."

Jess tensed up, preparing. "Okay, now you're getting me a little paranoid."

"Why are you with me, Jess?" She asked.

"What?" He said it so quickly there was barely time for a breath. "What do you mean, why am I with you? You know why I am."

"I've heard you say it but what if it's not true?" She commented.

"Rory," he turned to her as best as he could while continuing to drive. "What did she say?"

"She didn't say it," she said. "Not exactly. It's just a comment she said. Mom joked we should try to keep our hands to ourselves at least before we make it to Yale and i don't know. Its stupid."

"What are you asking me?" He said. "Are you asking me if I'm with you for sex?"

"No!" She half-shouted. "No, I'm not. But...Is that all we do? We sleep together. Is that our relationship?"

Jess shook his head once. "We've only been officially together a week."

Rory sighed. "And in that week, Paris heard having sex, my mom walked in on us and we had shower sex above a diner full of customers."

"So?"

"So is that all we do?" She asked again. "Maybe we should slow this down, see if it's still there without it."

"Rory, this is ridiculous," he told her. "We're twenty years old. We're in a new relationship and happen to wildly attracted to the other. It's normal."

"It is?" Jess nodded. "So our relationship - it's normal?"

He let out a small laugh. "I don't know if we're normal. I mean, you drink a lot of coffee but sex? We're right on track."

"Oh."

"That's why you're so quiet?" He asked. "Because you thought I'm only here because of sex?"

"I didn't think you were only here for that," she confessed. "I know you love me. That's not the problem. The problem was I overthought my mom's comment and what led to the comment."

"Okay," he said, not sure if that was the right response.

"I'm sorry," she leaned back in her seat. "I'm ruining what could be a nice trip for us with doubt and questions."

"Don't forget silence," he commented which earned a scowl. Jess laughed.

"Maybe a road trip isn't a bad idea," she murmured. "You and me, alone, open road. We could only bring what we hundred percent need and money. See what happens."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Rory smiled at Jess and he smiled back. "Now I'm really wishing it was summer."

She laughed and put her hand on his. "Come on, drive. Maybe we have time to squeeze in some normal activities before life kicks in."

"I love it when you talk dirty to me," he said and she just laughed again.

…...

Lorelai had been worried all weekend. She wasn't even sure why exactly. Her daughter was in love and she was happy. Usually, when you hear your child is in a loving relationship, you're happy for them. Happy that they are happy. But Lorelai didn't feel like that was the case here.

She would be lying if she said she wasn't worried, that was for sure. Rory, for the longest time, didn't have interest in relationships. When Dean had come alone, Lorelai thought her fears were discovered. The boyfriend, the first love.

But Dean wasn't the one she needed to be afraid of. When Rory told her there was not only a guy she met on spring break, but that she had slept with him, she wanted to panic. Rory - sleeping with a random guy she just met on vacation? That wasn't who her daughter was and she wanted to rip the guy to shreds when she learned he left.

At first it didn't matter that he left because of the phone call. At least that was her feelings when she learned it was Jess. Lorelai remembered watching Rory on the phone outside the diner. She remembered her daughter's face light up during this conversation and fearing she was in love and didn't tell her.

Imagine her thoughts as she learned it was Jess Mariano on the other end of the line.

Rory was half right in her fear being planted in not telling her. That was part of it. They used to tell each other everything and here they were, twenty years after the biggest life change, and already growing apart. She thought she had more time before Rory kept things from her. Their relationship had always been abnormal and she liked that. This was different.

Rory had gained a whole love and sex life without her knowing. She fell in love with someone, she had began a physical relationship with someone. Lorelai wondered what else she might keep from her in the future considering these.

When she watched the two of them together, she knew it was more than a fling. She saw the look in not only her daughter's eyes but also in Jess'. It thrilled her to know she was so loved and loved in return. But the fear at how she's so young came back and she just wanted to stop the scared thoughts.

Hesitantly, she stopped her train of thought. She didn't want those thoughts. If there was a real reason to worry, she would. Right now, Rory seemed beyond happy and Jess was driving her back to school right now. Afterwards, he would come back, in his car, while Rory's car sat in her driveway.

She tried not to think about how there'd be no surprise visits from Rory unless Jess drive to Yale.

Finally she decided to go back to work. It was pointless to even think any of this. Her daughter was happy and in love. That was all she wanted for her after all. Right now, that was what she would focus on. That was what she would care about.

…..

Jess had dropped Rory off not long after their conversation. She invited him in, they sat on the couch while she made another cup of coffee for herself. He declined but watched her with a smile as she drank hers. It was Monday morning and soon she would be in charge of the student from Chilton.

Jess prepped her on how amazing she would be for this girl before grabbing the denim jacket his girlfriend bought him and heading for the door. She followed, putting her cup down. They whispered I love you's and kissed lightly. He told her she'd do great and wished her luck. She asked if she'd see him later which he said he's try and opened the door.

The bustle of students was strong in the halls. Rory said another goodbye to Jess outside her door, kissed him again and smiled to herself. He smiled back, smirk tugging at his lips as he again told her he loved her.

Rory watched with content as he walked away. She got a great view of him from behind as he left and she unashamedly checked out his ass. He did it to her, why not do it to him she thought. Besides, she felt a sense of pride in knowing that ass was technically hers. Jess was hers. It definitely brought more than pride to know that actually.

Time came for her to meet up the student. She fixed herself up, made sure her hair was okay. She just hoped it was nerves about helping her old headmaster and not thinking she'd screw up that had her worried. At least she had finally told Paris about it, though. That helped a little.

"Is she here yet?" Paris asked.

"Not yet," Rory replied. "Any minute now, though. Wanna see all this stuff I got for her after Jess left?"

She began to pull out a Yale t-shirt and a baseball cap for starters when Paris scoffed. "I can't believe you. You don't even have that card swiping job anymore and you're buying all this crap."

"I want her feel welcome," Rory defended. "I thought I told you to open a window when you use the hot glue gun."

Paris ignored her comment about the craft table. "She'll feel welcome. They all feel welcome."

A confused look crossed Rory's face. "Who's they?"

"The enemy." The confused look just got more confused. "Any girl under the age of 17 is the enemy."

Rory shook her head. "And I think it's definitely time I open a window."

"They're coming for everything," Paris stood. "They're going to take our jobs, our thunder, our starter husband's."

"Don't you have a class to get to?" She asked. Right then, there was a knock on the door. With a sigh, she turned to her roommate. "Please don't scare her off."

"Me? Scare her off?" She scoffed. "She's the one with the alabaster skin and perky breasts."

"Don't say perky breasts either," Rory warned right before she opened the door.

A young girl, dark hair and a big smile was on the other side. "Are you Rory Gilmore?"

"Yes," she smiled. "I am. Hi."

"I'm Anna," the girl introduced. "You probably figured that out."

She liked this girl already, she decided. "Did you find the place okay?"

"I got lost a few times," she admitted. "But people were really nice and helped me find it."

"It's a friendly world out there, isn't it?" Paris commented.

"Anna, this is my roommate, Paris," Rory introduced.

"Hi," Anna said to Paris.

She didn't say hi back. "Don't go in my room."

Rory gave Anna a mini tour of the dorm, telling her she would stay in the common room. There was another knock on the door which Rory went to open. "Marty."

"Long time, no see," he said.

She smiled at her friend. "It hasn't been that long. Come in, meet Anna."

He gasped at the new girl. "Did Paris move?"

"I'm right here," Paris said snarkily.

"What are you doing here?" Rory asked.

"I was at this party that had caviar and I thought I'd bring you some over," he told her.

"Oh," she said, unsure how to react. Marty bringing her stuff seemed like he liked her. She thought there was a crush hidden in their friendship but she definitely didn't want to mislead him even if there wasn't a Jess. "Thanks."

"I'll just leave it in…" Paris coughed which caused him to pause then continue. "In my own fridge and if you want some, you can come over."

"Sounds great," Rory told him.

Marty backed up his steps. "You're busy. I'll just head out then. We'll talk later."

"Right," she agreed. She felt so bad.

When he left, Anna turned to Rory. "This is so great! You have boys bringing you food. What else can I look forward to?"

"How about I show you around?" Rory suggested instead of answering.

….

"We need to talk."

Jess looked behind him at his uncle. "About what?"

"You know what," he answered. "Come on."

He left Caesar in charge of the diner as they went upstairs in the apartment. Jess figured it was probably about him and Rory and decided to opt for a joke.

"So this is the dreaded sex talk?" Jess asked.

Luke made a face. "It's a talk. Not necessarily one I want to talk about that."

Jess nodded, a smirk played on the edge of his lips. "So what's the talk about if not a sex talk?"

"Could you please stop saying that word?" Luke replied.

"Which one?" He wondered. "Talk? What's? About?"

"Stop being a wiseass and sit down," he instructed.

"Fine," Jess sat down as he was told.

"What happened yesterday is unacceptable," Luke began. "I don't want to know details but I can figure what it's close to and it is unacceptable."

"How can you be sure it's unacceptable if you don't know what it is?" He tested.

"Jess."

"Fine, fine, I'm quiet now."

"I have known Rory for a long time," Luke said. "Eight years. I've watched her grow up into who she is today. She was with that Dean for far longer than he deserved and she deserved better than him."

Jess nodded, having heard briefly about Dean from Rory. He had only met him a few times but he could tell he wouldn't like him from what he knew. He didn't comment and instead let his uncle continue.

"But I also watched you grow up," he said. "I was at the hospital when you were born, I helped take care of you after your dad left. I know what you went through with your mom and I know there's stuff I don't know about that."

Jess waited, patient. Luke took a deep breath before he spoke again.

"I've seen you with her," he said. "You look, dare I say, happy. Rory makes you happy. And it seems you make her happy too."

Jess' mouth resisted a smile as his uncle said that. To actually hear someone say it, well, it made it more real. That it wasn't just them and the world could notice.

"But that does not mean I approve of whatever happened," Luke pointed a finger at his nephew the way an adult would a child. "The shower is off limits when she is here. I don't care what happens. If she spills something on herself, you will take her home."

"Got it," Jess said in agreement with a tiny hint of a smirk now.

"Under no circumstances is she allowed to stay here overnight," he continued. "I don't want to wake up one morning and find Rory here, you understand me?"

"What if you spend the night at Lorelai's?" Jess questioned.

"What do you mean?"

"If you stay over at Lorelai's while Rory is in town," he shrugged. "I mean, you don't want to know what we're doing but she probably doesn't want to know what you're doing either. So what about then?"

"Are you asking my permission to have sleepovers?" He almost glared.

"It only seems fair if you and Lorelai have them," he replied.

"I'm not even gonna answer that," Luke said in surprise.

Jess stared at his uncle's face. "Blink once for no, blink twice for yes."

"No blinking," Luke said. "She can't stay here and how about this? I'll be here whenever she is in town. So Rory can stay with Lorelai after all."

"You'd deprive Lorelai of fun time with Luke?" He asked, shocked. "That's cold."

"Stop it," he scolded and Jess bit back a grin at getting on his uncle's nerves.

"Look, me and Rory are adults," Jess said. "I know you may not be ready to accept that but we are. And I'm not gonna deny what kind of relationship we have, either. But I also don't want to feel like we have to hide it."

"I'm not saying you have to hide it," he commented. "Just don't let me know of it."

"That's hiding."

"Not entirely."

"Uncle Luke."

"Jess."

"I'm not gonna ask for permission for her to come over," he stated. "But I'm also not going to tell her she can't come over. For now, I'm living here, too and Rory is my girlfriend. If I want her come over, she can."

Luke is silent for a moment but finally he broke it. "Fine. But leave the activities to when I'm not here okay? Or when the diner isn't open."

"Yes, sir," Jess agreed with another smirk.

"And wipe that smirk off your face," he threatened. "Anyone who didn't know what happened would know now if you keep that up."

The smirk faded as he remembered Rory's words in the car. "Deal."

"All right," Luke nodded. "Now get back to work."

….

Rory had shown Anna around the school and to her classes. They briefly went to the library but she found an excuse to leave when she noticed Logan. It seemed she kept running into boys she did not want to run into today. A part of her wondered if Dean might show up.

Anna noticed Logan as they were leaving. "He's cute."

Rory nodded and strayed her away. "But not as cute as a Pushkin."

When lunch rolled around, Rory went to order their food. She came off line to find Anna talking to two boys. It was almost a narrow escape to get her away but she did.

In the middle of lunch, Anna excused herself to the bathroom. Rory took out her phone and called Jess' number. It went straight to voicemail so she hung up with a sigh. He was probably working. She missed him already and really wanted to rant to him about it. Somehow she felt her mother would have different reactions to what was happening with Anna.

During one of her classes was when it happened. It had been an ordinary class until Logan's friend, Colin had came in and declared his love for her. Soon after followed Logan and they began to fight. She was stunned speechless until she realized Finn enter. He had a whistle and it was obviously just some stunt.

Anna seemed thrilled at the amusement. Rory put her head in her hands in embarrassment. She couldn't believe this. Maybe he wanted to get her back after she "dumped" him. Maybe the fling had meant more to him than she thought it had. Rory grabbed her stuff and told Anna she'd be right back as she walked out into the hall.

It took a few moments to get her breathing right. What the hell was that? She heard voices and recognized one as Logan so she turned a corner and hid. He knew she left. He'd probably look for her. Rory stayed as silent as she could be and waited for him to pass.

Not long after the class poured out into the hallway and Anna found Rory again. She put on her brave face as they walked away from the room and back into their tour.


	33. Logan and lost wallets

**A/N: The stuff with Anna/Logan for this chapter is mostly as episode follows. And I really wanted to get the last chapter up so I summed up the scenes I mentioned rather than write it out since it happens as in canon. I hope no one minds.**

Lorelai had just finished laughing and making jokes about Rory losing Anna when her daughter let out a small sigh. She told her about Charleston calling and being in a kind of trouble with Chilton for losing a student but she needed to tell her more.

"What's wrong?" Lorelai asked. "You sighed. Something's wrong."

"It's Logan," she told her.

"Logan," Lorelai stated. "What happened?"

Rory rubbed her eyes tiredly. "He made this spectacle in one of my classes, in front of Anna, in front of everyone. It was so embarrassing."

She imagined Lorelai eyed her curiously. "What kind of a spectacle?"

"Him and his friends," she answered. "They fought over me, saying they were in love with me."

"Wow."

"I know."

"Do you think…"

"What?"

Now Lorelai sighed. "That Logan really could be in love with you?"

"No," she scoffed. "He's not. He's just getting me back for ending things and I guess that was an easy target."

"And you're sure he has no feelings?" She asked.

"Mom," she said and a shaky laugh followed. "Why the questions? Do you think he does or something?"

"I think you're an amazing girl and he'd be crazy to not have feelings," she said. "But I also don't know him so it could just be a stunt."

"Right," she said. It got Rory wondering, though.

"Have you told Jess?" She suddenly asked.

"Why would I tell Jess?" She said. "It was stupid and there's nothing to tell."

"A guy you were involved with just joked about being in love with you," she replied.

"Joked," she pointed out. "I'm not going to worry him over nothing."

"Rory," she said in a motherly tone, like she was going to tell her just in case it's not nothing.

"Does Luke know every time you and Dad speak?" Rory countered.

"That's different," she said.

"How?" She asked. "He's your ex. You had a relationship and now you have one with Luke. Shouldn't he know?"

"Half of the time we talk, it's about you," Lorelai said.

Rory raised an eyebrow despite being on the phone. "And the other half?"

"We're friends," she said. "We catch up."

"And dad - he has no feelings? None at all?" She wondered.

"I don't know," she admitted.

Rory nodded sadly. "So you don't tell him."

"Well right now, I can't," she said. "Apparently Luke is out of town."

"How come?" She asked. "Is something going on?"

"No," she replied. "He just had out of town business for the diner."

"Oh," she sounded relieved. "So everything's good?"

"All is good," she had a smile in her voice. "But I also have another topic for you. Thanksgiving."

"What about it?" She wondered, especially since it was too close to be making plans.

"Are you and Jess coming down?" She prodded.

Rory frowned. "You know, I actually hadn't thought about it. Probably, though. He lives in Stars Hollow now and it's not like I'm not coming. I guess i didn't think of it with us together."

"Well what do you think of you two together?" She prodded.

"I'll bring it up, see if he is doing dinner with us," she replied.

"Good," Lorelai said. "Because it'd be fun to see him get drilled by Mom."

"Crap," Rory muttered. "I didn't think of that part. Should I subject him to that?"

"We could always separate them," she replied. "But we already are half eating with Mom and then with Dad. And Luke might be coming because I'm making him."

Rory let out a small chuckle. "Poor Luke. Okay. I'll ask."

"Thatta girl."

…..

"Hey," Rory said as she answered the phone.

Jess smiled at her voice. "Sorry I couldn't answer earlier. The place is swamped."

"It's okay," she said. "You have work."

"Not just work," he said. "Today, I am in charge."

"Oh," she sounded surprised. "You're running the diner? Meaning, if you wanted time off, you could?"

Jess laughed. "I'd have to find someone to cover but yeah, essentially."

"Is there any chance you can come to Yale?" She wondered.

"Hmm," he smirked. "That is tempting."

"I wanna see you," she said. "And Anna left and apparently Paris is sleeping with our editor. The place is empty."

"Whoa, wait," he said. "Paris is sleeping with your editor?"

"Short story, don't much want to relive it," she commented. "But we're sort of even about her hearing us now."

"Oh," his eyebrow raised and he was glad he was on break in the apartment. "So...That's good? How traumatized are you? We'll base it off that."

She laughed. "Not as traumatized as I could be. But it was still awkward."

"Of course," he teased. "So. You're alone."

"Very alone," he could hear the pout in her voice. "And I'm missing my boyfriend. Can you help me find him?"

"That can be arranged," he nodded indifferently. "Let me just call around. Maybe Lane can come in."

"I don't want to force Lane to work," she sighed. "Maybe it's a bad idea."

"No," he backed up and ran a hand through his hair. "I'll see what I can do. I wanna see you too."

"And you'll be seeing me Thursday," she casually pointed out.

"Thursday?" He asked then it clicked. "Oh. I forgot."

"Thanksgiving," she said.

"I hadn't thought about it," he said.

"Me and my mom are going to my grandparent's," she mentioned. "And Luke might be, too."

"Ah," he nodded. Now he knew what she was getting at. "I see."

Rory quickly rushed to explain. "You are under no obligation to come. We haven't been dating that long and I don't want to scare you away with Emily and Richard Gilmore. I plan on keeping you around and this would be too early to lose you."

He could tell she meant the last part as a joke but something in her shaky voice told him otherwise. A part of Rory must have actually believed her grandparents could scare him off. Jess wondered what kind of people the Gilmores were.

"Let me think about it?" He said. "If the risk is leaving then it seems pretty high stakes right?"

"Right," she agreed, almost worried. "Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"You really don't have to," she whispered softly. "My last boyfriend, they grilled him on his future so bad that he never went back and we were together almost two more years."

"Maybe they'll like me," Jess teased.

Rory had a smile as she replied. "Maybe. I hope so. I could see you and Grandpa getting along."

"See?" He smiled with her. "It could happen."

"Okay," she said. Her smile was bigger, he could tell. Jess really wished he could see her right now.

"I'll come," he said. "I don't know if I'm gonna regret it but I'll come. What could really happen? They question me in life. So what?"

"You're sweet," Rory stated. "Thank you."

"I should get back," Jess told her, tucking his head down at her gratitude. "See how the diner is with Cesar running my break."

"Right," she sounded sad. "I'm sorry."

"Not necessary," he shook his head. "I'll call you later? Maybe see you too?"

Another smile in her words. "That'd be nice."

"Love you."

"Love you, too."

And with that, they hung up. Jess ran a hand through his hair again. He really needed a haircut, he thought to himself. With a deep breath and shoving aside thoughts of what he agreed to, he headed back downstairs.

The diner was still swamped. Jess rushed around, doing what he can. Looking at the crowd there was no way he was gonna be able to visit Rory. He sighed and tried to focus on his work.

…..

The next day was the day before Thanksgiving. Rory had been sad Jess couldn't make it last night but she was glad she would see him tomorrow. It was their first holiday together. She was both excited and nervous.

So caught up in her thoughts, she didn't notice someone right in front of her. She crashed right into the person, ready to apologize and then she saw who it was.

"Logan."

"Hey, Ace," he said with a grin. "How nice to crash into you."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," she replied. "I wasn't looking."

"It's okay," he said. "What did you think of my surprise the other day?"

"I was definitely surprised," she said with a tone that didn't sound like that meant a good thing. Logan kept his smile though. "We need to talk."

"Okay," he agreed. "What about?"

"Your surprise!" She exclaimed and pulled him aside to a less crowded part of the hall. "What the hell was that, Logan? Were you getting back at me? What?"

"Getting back at you?" He seemed stunned. "No. That wasn't it."

Rory closed her eyes then opened them. "Then why? Why would you embarrass me like that?"

"You mean it isn't obvious?" He asked. She just gave a confused expression. "I like you, Ace."

"You can't like me," she sighed. "Logan. I ended it and you're trying to prove it meant more than it was."

"It did mean more than it was," he told her. "Come on, Rory. Let's give it a shot. You and me."

"No," she whispered then spoke up. "No, Logan."

"Tell me why we can't," he pushed.

"I have a boyfriend," Rory told him. "I told you this."

"You're still with him?" He continued.

"Yes," she sighed. "Logan, look. You're a nice guy and I'm sure any girl would be happy to have you."

"But not you."

"But not me."

"All right," he nodded. "I get it."

"Thank you," she said. "I am sorry, though."

"Right," he said. "I'll see you around, I guess."

"See you around."

"Bye, Ace."

Logan backed away from her until he finally faded into the crowd. After Rory watched him leave, she realized maybe she did need to tell Jess about what happened.

…..

Lane walked into the diner with the ring of the bell. She took off her gloves and jacket and walked to where the employees kept their stuff. There wasn't a lot but it was a space for everyone.

When she turned around, she saw Jess sitting serving some guy who looked strangely familiar. She had never seen him before but there was something about him. As Jess walked away with the coffee pot, she caught a glimpse of the look the guy gave. It was like he knew Jess.

She almost didn't notice Jess had came right in front of her. "Hey."

"Hey," she broke out of her funk. "Who's that guy?"

He looked back at the man he just served and shrugged. "Beats me."

"He looks familiar," she pointed out.

Jess glanced over at him again. "I guess. I've never seen him before today, though."

He walked away and went back to work while Lane stood by suspiciously. Not long after, she pushed it aside and went to work herself.

….

For some reason, Lane watched the guy all night. All he did was order coffee and it looked like it was getting to Jess. Finally, the guy stood up and left but Lane saw something on the floor. She walked over and picked it up.

It was a wallet. And belonged to a James Mariano.

"Oh, crap," she thought to herself but shouted louder. "I'll be right back!"

She rushed outside in the direction she thought she saw the man go. It was a lucky break when she saw him standing in thought, hands in his pocket.

"Hey!" She shouted and he looked at her. "You forgot your wallet."

"Oh, thanks," the man said, James.

"You're welcome, Mr. Mariano," she said casually.

He looked at her. "Jimmy."

"Jimmy," she nodded and tilted her head at him. "Am I right in guessing you're Jess' father or are you another uncle?"

"Father," he answered.

Another nod. "I see."

"I just wanted to see him," he defended.

"And what?" She crossed her arms. "Spend Thanksgiving with him tomorrow?"

"No," Jimmy shook his head. "The holiday just got me thinking about him. I missed twenty years."

"He's doing good," Lane said. "And you've seen him now so what are you going to do? Leave?"

"I don't know," he admitted.

"Well, don't forget to stop by for more coffee before you go, then," she said as she turned to walk away.

When she went back in the diner, Jess was right at the door. "Where did you go?"

"A customer forget their wallet," she said and walked inside.

Jess just stared after her in confusion. He couldn't wait for Luke to come back tonight.

…..

The next day came quickly. Luke was finally back, Lorelai was demanding her morning coffee and Jess was no longer in charge of the diner. He couldn't get more words out of Lane on what happened outside but he couldn't shake the feeling it was more than a forgetting wallet...and that it had to do with him.

The bell above the door chimed with entrances. Jess stayed planted in his seat next to Lorelai as she rambled on about something at work or what Sookie was doing for the holidays. She mentioned a turkey that deep fried a couple of years ago and he was glad to be lost in the conversation.

He didn't even notice when she walked in. Her footsteps were light, not even her mother knew. Cold hands came over Jess' eyes. "Guess who?"

"That can't be my girlfriend," he replied. "I thought I was picking her up."

Jess turned in his seat and Lorelai gasped, smiling brightly. "I know. I wanted to surprise you. Good surprise?"

"Very good," he stood up and hugged her tightly, placing a quick kiss on her lips.

"How did you get here?" She exclaimed as she moved to hug her daughter once Jess pulled apart.

"I had Paris drive me," she beamed as they pulled out of the hug. "I may owe her a favor now."

"What kind of favor?" Lorelai asked.

And just like that, the door opened again. "Jeez. Is there nowhere to park here?"

"Paris, you're here," Lorelai smiled big. "Welcome."

"Rory told me I could have Thanksgiving with her since my parents are out of town," she explained. "Again."

"Well, that's great," the older Gilmore replied. "This means you're coming to my parent's though which...may not be good."

"Can't be worse than with mine," she sat on the other side of Lorelai.

Luke walked out of the kitchen with surprise etched on his face. "Rory. Hi.'

"Hi, Luke," she came around and hugged him. "How was business out of town?"

"Good, good," he nodded out of the hug. "Liz can't make it though, by the way. Apparently, there's some faire she wants to attend with TJ."

"Figures," Jess murmured from his seat.

Rory looked over at him sadly. "Well, we can have our own Thanksgiving, then."

"With my parents of course," Lorelai pointed out as she took another sip of her coffee.

…..

Jess escaped with Rory upstairs, leaving Paris with Lorelai and the diner crowd. The first thing out of his mouth was not what she expected. "Have you talked to Lane?"

"What?" She turned to him. "No, not yet. Why?"

"Something happened last night," he told her. "She's been acting weird ever since."

"Oh," Rory frowned. "Well, what happened?"

Jess shook his head. "That's the thing. I don't know what did."

"I'll talk to her," she said as she walked closer to him and put her hands on his sides. "So."

"So," he copied her word.

"This may be the only alone time we have today," she commented.

"Right," he confirmed. "And I'm meeting the grandparents. Do they know I'm coming?"

"I called, said there will be some extra guests," Rory answered. "Grandma didn't sound like she minded. They have quite a few guests themselves. You may get lost in it all."

"No grilling?"

"Maybe not."

"That is good news," he put his own arms around her waist. "How long do you think we have before they come looking for us?"

"I think we have some time," she smiled.

"More good news," Jess murmured as he leaned in to kiss his girlfriend.


	34. What's a Jimmy

**A/N: I'm taking the easy way out. I wanted to make it more Literati/Jess centric.**

The dinner did not go as expected. The first thing was Emily and Richard. They had done the dinner together and to everyone's surprise, they got along. There was a few more guests other than themselves and when Rory and Lorelai walked on, their own guests in tow, Emily or Richard didn't seem to mind.

Lorelai reminded them of Luke, having had dinner with him recently as her boyfriend and not just a friend anymore. Rory reintroduced them to Paris. Richard remembered her from the group project he had helped Rory with.

When she got to Jess, she paused. Rory wasn't sure how they would react to him or her having a boyfriend. She smoothly said it once she regained her voice and Jess squeezed her hand for assurance. Emily said a polite hello, no hostility in her voice. Richard offered drinks and they moved into the house.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Jess whispered to her, his hand still held hers.

"I guess not," she replied.

It was easy. Too easy. She expected a fallout later.

The Thanksgiving dinner itself went smoothly as well. Jess wasn't interrogated as he had been warned. He seemed to believe it was just Rory worried too much. She, on the other hand, knew there was more.

After dinner, they drove back to Stars Hollow in silence. Paris had demanded they take her car and it would dear all of them unlike cramming into the Jeep or Luke's truck. Rory almost interjected about her or Jess having cars but decided it was better to not interrupt Paris Gellar.

Jess got left off at the diner and got out of the car. Rory scooted out, too, wanting to go with him. She explained that she was headed home with Lorelai for a bit but asked if it was okay if she came by later. He smirked and told her of course. One quick kiss later, he tapped her on the hip and she smiled brightly as she climbed back into the car.

Once the car was gone - and Paris' comment to "get a room, not a street", he headed to the door. The keys jangled in his hand and he rustled through them to find the right one. Jess made a mental note to ask Luke why he moved the extra key from over the door.

Footsteps came closer and he turned swiftly to see Lane stood in front of him. "Jeez. Sneak up on guys much?"

"Can we talk?" She ignored his sarcasm.

Jess nodded numbly, noticing the serious expression on her face. "Yeah, sure. Come on in."

He let Lane enter the diner first. Once inside, she took her gloves off, letting them breathe away from the outside chill. Jess put on coffee, for him and Lane and because Rory would be by.

"I saw you come home and I knew I couldn't keep this inside any longer," she explained.

"Keep what inside?" He asked curiously.

She walked nervously and suddenly stopped. Lane stared right at Jess's face. "You may need to sit."

He laughed once. "It's that serious? Okay. I'll sit."

Once he was seated, Lane took a deep breath. "Your dad is here."

"What?" He questioned in disbelief.

"Your dad is here," she repeated. "I saw him. I talked to him."

"Wait a minute," he held out his hands in a moving gesture only to close his eyes and press his fingers to the side of his head until they opened again. "So, my dad - who I never met - is not only here in Stars Hollow but you talked to him?"

Lane nodded. "Yes."

"Well how?" He asked. "And what? He didn't come say hi?"

"Do you remember that guy who kept ordering just coffee?" Jess nodded so she continued. "That was him. Then he forgot his wallet and I checked the name on the license. He admitted to being your father when I caught up to him."

Jess leaned back in the chair, thoughts screaming through his head. "It's a good thing you told me to sit."

Lane made a worried face. "Are you okay?"

He didn't answer right away. His thoughts scattered anywhere between he's glad he didn't talk to him, hoping he left already and where the hell has he been the past twenty years.

"Yeah," he said almost shakingly. "Yeah, I'm - I'm good."

"I didn't mean to spring this on you," she rushed out. "But I met him, we talked briefly. He wanted to see you and I knew you had to know."

"Did he -" he started then stopped. Jess took a breath before he tried again. "Did he say anything? Maybe why he wants to see me? Why he left?"

"No," she shook her head. "I'm not even sure what he's going to do now. But if it was me, if they'd been out of my life since I was born and they walked back in now - I'd want to know."

"Thanks, Lane," Jess said in the softest whisper.

The coffee pot filled by now and it was ready. He looked over to it, not seeing the coffeemaker. His thoughts were clouded by the news he'd just heard. Lane broke the silence. "You made coffee."

Jess shook out of his head. "Yeah. I wasn't sure how long you'd stay and Rory's coming later so I thought you might want some."

She smiled. "Thanks."

He didn't watch as she walked over to the pot and poured herself a cup. Jess stayed against the back of his chair, trying to process. He was nowhere near ready to see Rory tonight. He almost considered calling her and telling her he didn't feel good. That would just make her come over anyway so he scratched that.

Lane walked back to him, already having sipped the liquid. Her hands were snug around the mug and she looked at Jess, worry etched on her face. "Maybe I should have waited. Are you okay?"

It was then he knew he couldn't lie to her, not about this. Lane lost her dad and he knew that if her dad walked in, she'd be filled with joy. Jess, on the other hand, wasn't sure how to feel, especially since he'd never formally met the guy.

"I don't know," he answered honestly.

"What are you gonna do if he comes back?" She wondered.

"I don't know," he said again. "I really don't know."

"Are you gonna tell Rory?" She asked now.

Jess looked up at her. He wasn't even sure. He didn't want to put his drama on her. He loved her too much for that. But he also loved her too much to let it fester and her not to know why. "Yeah. Yeah, I am."

Lane nodded. "I'm glad. She wouldn't want you go through this alone, you know. And I don't, either. We're all here for you, you know that right?"

"I know," a hint of a smile finally played on his lips. "Thanks, Lane."

She nodded with her own small smile. "You're welcome."

They sat quietly while she finished her coffee. Jess stayed planted in his seat, unable to stand. When she did finish, she put the cup on the counter and stood from the seat she had occupied after the news.

"Hey, you and Rory - you two are good?" She asked.

Jess nodded, a smile appeared on his face instantly. "Yeah, we're good."

Lane nodded with another smile. "Good. Because I don't want to give you the 'ill kick your butt if you hurt her' speech."

"You wouldn't be the first one," he retorted.

"Luke?"

"Of course."

She headed for the door and gave him a nod as she turned the knob. "See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow," he confirmed.

As soon as Lane was gone, Jess cleaned her cup and headed straight upstairs. He called his mom, getting her voicemail. His mind overworked when he couldn't talk to her. What the hell was Jimmy Mariano doing here, in Stars Hollow, trying to see him? How did he know where he was?

A million different scenarios played out in his mind for how this could go. A part of Jess even considered hitting him. Nothing seemed to explain why now and he frustrated himself with not knowing.

If he didn't come back, Jess would never know why. He wanted to go see him himself but he also had no idea where he was staying. The clock ticked and before he knew it, an hour passed just of his thoughts.

Jess sighed and collapsed on his bed. His head needed a rest.

…..

"Was it just me or was Mom too okay with tonight?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

Rory shook her head, her lip in-between her teeth. "No. Something's going on. They even had the party together."

"And what was that?" Lorelai gasped. "She said they didn't want to spend it together and suddenly they did? And without any notice?"

"Maybe they wanted to not throw off the other guests?" She suggested.

"I don't know," she disagreed. "They're up to something. I can't figure out what but they are."

"Maybe they're just on good terms again," Rory replied. "I mean, not snapping at each other or demanding to be apart can't be a bad thing."

"I'm not saying it's bad," she said. "It's just...Not them. Not the way they've been acting."

"What do you think is going on?" She found herself asking.

Lorelai just shook her head, not knowing. They heard a noise in the kitchen and a muttered 'piece of crap' before she stood up to check on Luke.

Rory leaned back on the couch, already feeling guilty about the whole night. She set Jess up to whatever Emily had planned and now her mom was suggesting that even the team front her grandparents had put on was that - a front.

She sighed, knowing she wanted to get back to him. They were mostly just sitting around talking and the thing Rory most had to share, she couldn't. The whole Logan thing put her head on a spin and she wasn't sure how to react. She wanted to tell Jess now that she knew there really were feelings but didn't know how to.

Finally, after her mother began to walk back into the room, she stood up. "I should get going."

"Already?" Lorelai pouted. "You sure?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I think I'm gonna go tell Jess about - you know, that thing we talked about?"

"Ah, the L thing," she nodded knowingly. "I remember."

"I talked to him about what happened, L," she clarified. "And it seems you may be right after all. It might be better to tell him now, not let time pass."

"Right," she agreed. "And when else is it better to tell him about L if not Thanksgiving?"

Rory made a face. "You're right. Maybe I should wait."

"Wait for what?" Luke asked as he entered the room, cleaning off his hands.

"To go see Jess," Lorelai answered. "She's torn between her mother and her boyfriend, isn't that sweet?"

"If I was someone else, I'd say go to Jess," Luke replied. "Who knows what time she'll let you loose?"

Lorelai gasped. "Hey!"

"But the real me says stay here," he said and she knew it was partly because of what happened last weekend.

"I'm just gonna call him," she said. "Tell him I'll be late."

Rory excused herself as Luke and Lorelai sat on the couch, her mother snuggled closer to her boyfriend. The phone rang on the other end but there was no answer. A pit formed in her stomach as she wondered why he didn't answer.

"Hey, Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna go after all," Rory explained as she grabbed her coat.

"But I thought you were waiting," Lorelai said, appearing in the doorway, the double meaning to her words clear.

Rory shurgged. "There was no answer. I'm just gonna go check on him. If he falls asleep, I can't get in later so maybe I'll grab a key and come back."

"Oh," she said. "Well, all right. But if you got locked out, we know who to blame right?"

"Taylor was letting Kirk in!" Luke shouted from the living room.

"We know, honey," Lorelai replied back before turning to her daughter. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good," she had her hand on the doorknob now. "I just wanna make sure he's awake."

"That all?"

"Yeah, don't worry, Mom," she kissed her quickly on the cheek then headed out the door.

It almost didn't matter Lorelai found her departure off. It didn't even matter she found the dinner weird. She'll worry about that later, she told herself, not that there was a reason to worry. But if there was, she argued against herself, she'd worry later.

Rory wrapped her jacket around herself as she walked to the diner. The lights were all off and she frowned. If he was home, it wouldn't be pitch black inside. Her steps increased as she walked in a hurry, noticing there was something on the window.

When she finally reached the door, she sighed in relief that she didn't have to worry, not exactly. She fingered the note, pulling it off the door, the tape ripped. She reread it again.

Rory -

I hope to be back before you read this. If I'm not, I went down to the bridge. The key's in the secret spot again. Don't tell Luke or Taylor. Or Kirk, actually.

She smiled to herself. Rory's hands reaches up to above the door as she felt the metal of the key. For a moment, she considered going inside and waiting for Jess. There was another part of her that decided what to do and that was to go down to the bridge.

…..

Her steps were slow. He almost didn't hear her. When he knew there was another presence on the wood with him, Jess almost smiled. A part of him knew she would come even though he hoped she'd stay inside to be warm.

He stayed silent, not acknowledging her yet. The footsteps came closer, the sound rose with each inch she crossed. Arms came around Jess, wrapped around his shoulders and hugged him to her body. Now he smiled.

"Couldn't find the key?" he teased her.

"I found the key," Rory answered as she let go of him and sat beside him. "But I wanted to find you."

"I was gonna come back," he told her.

She nodded. "I know."

They sat together quietly. Neither said anything immediately but Jess reached over and took Rory's hand in his. Their fingers twined together and she looked down at them, a sad smile on her face. She knew something was wrong.

Almost instantly her mind wandered to Logan. Did Jess know about what happened? She wasn't sure what else could have changed so quickly tonight, not unless something else happened. She took a deep breath, steadying herself right before she spoke again.

"Jess, what happened?" She asked. "Tonight, at dinner, you were okay. You were better than okay. You held your own at a Gilmore family holiday. What changed?"

A deep breath came out of him. She did not expect his next words. "I know why Lane was acting weird."

"Oh?" She phrased as a question. "What was it?"

He stared down at their joined hands as he answered. "My dad's here. She saw him, even talked to him."

"Your dad?" She was stunned to say the least. "But I thought that -"

"He left when I was a baby?" He finished for her, a dark laugh on the end. "Yeah. And apparently he wanted to see me. Guess see how I'm doing, no thanks to him."

"Jess, I'm so sorry," she moved her free hand to rub his shoulder soothingly.

He shook his head. "There's no reason to be sorry. You didn't leave me."

"And I won't," she said, all seriousness in her voice.

Finally, Jess turned to look at her. He half smiled at her. "A part of me wants to him to have left already. Prove that maybe he just wanted to order coffee and see me. That he didn't actually care to talk to me."

Rory nodded in understanding. "And the other half?"

"Wants him to still be here," he sighed. "So I can ask him questions and find out why he came. Ask why I wasn't good enough even he didn't want to stay with my mom."

"You are good enough," she told him.

Jess scoffed. "Not for him, I guess."

Rory wasn't going to listen to that. She grabbed his face in her two hands, letting go of his in the process. "Hey. You're enough. If I believed in how my dad made me feel, I'd be a mess. But it's the ones who love me who tell me what I am and here I am, the one that loves you, telling you what you are. You're enough."

He didn't know what to say. Jess stared in Rory's eyes, blue on brown. He gave her a small smile and she smiled back, he could see tears at the edge of her eyes. She really wanted him to believe her.

"Okay," he said. So he would - he'd believe her, just like she wanted him to. Because he'd do anything for her and to make those tears go away. "Okay."

She nodded at him, lips held tightly together. Rory said nothing now but she moved her hand to wipe her eyes. Jess moved quicker, his thumbs caressed her cheek as he wiped the stray tears away. She smiled softly at him once her face was dry and he smiled back.

"No crying, all right?" He tried to tease her. "The blue eyes are convincing enough. You don't need to add to it."

Rory laughed now and he was glad to hear the sound. "You probably think I'm stupid for it. I mean, you're the one with the shocking news and this big event and I'm the one sitting here crying."

"No," Jess shook his head, thumbs still moving over her cheeks. Now it was more to soothe her than it was was to stop the tears. "I couldn't think you're stupid. It's impossible for you to be stupid."

"I love how clouded by love you are," she teased.

"Then I'm really clouded because I love you a lot," he replied.

Rory kissed him then. He held her tightly to him, deepening the kiss without it getting too deep. He cradled her face in his hands, staring right into her eyes again.

"Come on," she managed to say. "It's freezing out here."

"All right," he agreed. "Let's go."

Jess stood up first, after he pulled Rory up with him. She kissed him again once they were on their feet and he leaned their foreheads together for a split second. When the second ended, Jess pressed his lips to her forehead, kissing the porcelain skin. She smiled again softly as they soon began their walk back to the diner.

…..

Back at the diner, both of them were quiet. Rory drank her coffee across from Jess in the upstairs apartment as they sat on his bed. She had changed into pajamas except not really. Her pajamas had really meant she slipped off her own clothes and put on one of Jess' shirts and his sweatpants. He smiled at the sight of her in his clothes.

Jess still wore his dinner clothes even when he finished his coffee. He was in the middle of washing his cup when she spoke up.

"Which part wins over?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" Jess replied.

"Before," she explained. "You said part of you wanted him be gone and the other part of you wanted him to still be here. Which do you want more?"

Jess turned off the water at the sink but he didn't turn around. She may be sitting on his bed and couldn't see him but he felt protected as long as he didn't turn around. "I don't know. I honestly don't."

Her bare feet padded behind him and she once again for the second time that night appeared behind Jess. Rory's arms wrapped around his torso this time, her chin on his back. "Which do you think is true?"

He sighed, rooted in place. "I don't know about that, either, to be honest."

She nodded and he felt it against his shirt. "You know I'm here, right? Anything you need, I'm right here."

Jess unwrapped her arms around him and turned to face her finally. "I know. And it goes both ways, okay?"

"I know," she smiled.

He pulled her closer to him in a hug. Her arms encircled him, hands rested on his back. Jess' hands were on her back too, not rested but rubbing almost in a massage. Rory rested her head, left side, on the hard planes on his chest. She sighed in contentment.

"Hey, I got an idea," Jess said.

Her eyebrows rose. "Yeah?"

"Let's go to New York," he suggested.

Rory let out a laugh and pulled herself an inch away to see his face. "What?"

"Come on," he urged. "I could show you around. We could spend a weekend there. It could be really good."

"But -" she shook her head. "What about here? My mom? What if your dad still is here?"

"We don't have to do it now," he clarified, not commenting on the dad question.

"You really wanna take me to New York?" She beamed.

"Yes," he stared down into her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time tonight. "I really want to take you to New York."

"Okay," she agreed, her smile grew. "Okay."

"Okay," he smiled back and kissed her lightly.

…..

Late that night, with Rory asleep, leaned on Jess' chest, he still couldn't sleep. Slowly he maneuvered himself out from underneath his girlfriend and climbed off of the bed. Rory made a noise and he smiled to himself as he imagined that the sound was because she knew he was gone.

He checked the time and took a deep breath. He knew he'd be disrupting his uncle's sleep but he had to know. Without any more thought, the number had been dialed and the phone rang.

"Jess?" Luke answered, sleep all over his voice even in one word. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"No, not exactly," Jess told him.

He heard Luke sigh in relief. "The way Rory rushed out of here, I thought there was. So everything's good?"

"Not exactly good either," he said.

"But it was important enough to call at 2 am when I'm up at five?" He asked.

Jess nodded. "Yes."

"Okay," he said and he heard a door close. The volume of his voice rose in his next words and that's how he knew he was away from Lorelai. "Tell me. What's going on?"

"My dad is here," Jess sighed. "He came in while you were gone, he stayed at the diner almost all day, ordered nothing but coffee. I think he knew you were gone because he happened to come when you were away."

"Your dad," he said tonelessly. "That deadbeat that knocked up my sister, married my sister, and left to get diapers and never came back, he's in Stars Hollow?"

"As far as I know, yes," he replied.

"Christ," Luke muttered. "And you saw him, talked to him?"

"I saw him," he said. "I have him coffee. Lane was the one who talked to him after he left his wallet and she followed him out."

"So Lane knows too," he said.

"Lane's the one who told me it was my father," Jess explained.

Another sigh escaped Luke, this time not in relief. "And he's still in town?"

"Maybe, I don't know," he sat down on the couch. The pacing wasn't helping his thoughts.

"Did you tell your mom?" Luke asked.

Jess shook his head. "No. I told Rory and now I'm telling you."

"Okay," he paused a moment before he continued. "In the morning, we'll talk. We'll try to find out if he's still around. We don't tell Liz, not yet."

"All right," he agreed, especially to not telling Liz. He didn't love the idea of what would come after she knows of that bombshell.

"Now, go to sleep, it's late," he scolded.

Jess smirked at the fatherly tone his uncle gave. "It's technically early."

"Don't be a smart ass," he told him but turned serious. "How did Rory take the news?"

"Fairly good," he admitted. "But she's also a better person than me so I guess she would."

"Hey, stop," he said.

"I know," he waved it off. "Got a speech from her too on that. I'm just breaking the rules - I didn't stop being a smart ass. Sorry, Uncle Luke."

"Now go," he said. "I'm not so denial to not know she's there with you so go be with Rory. We'll talk in the morning."

"Night, Uncle Luke."

"Night, Jess."

They hung up and Jess sighed. He stood from the couch and walked back over to his bed. Rory now claimed his side of the bed, his pillow was her pillow. The pillow that had been previously been hers now remained faceless. He smirked to himself and took out his phone.

The camera clicked and he took one look at it then shut the phone off. Slowly, he climbed back into the bed, lifting Rory slightly to fit in. She woke up and looked at him with sleep filled eyes. "What's going on?"

"Ssh, I got up to use the bathroom," he told her. Telling her he couldn't sleep and had to tell Luke about Jimmy might worry her but he knew he'd tell her tomorrow.

"Oh," she let him slide back in.

He chuckled at her and kissed her hair as he got back into the bed. Rory again snuggled up to him and he contentedly put his arms around her, pulling her closer. Whatever else happened, Mariano men included, he was pretty sure this was what happiness felt like and for that he was grateful.


	35. Black Friday not so black

**A/N: More Jess/Literati centric coming. No one minds that right? :D**

Jess moved his girlfriend's hair away from her neck. His lips brushed her skin like a feather, lightly touching just enough to send a shiver through her. He did it again and again. Light almost peppered kisses on Rory's neck to her shoulder, behind her ear.

A sound escaped her mouth. It wasn't particularly a giggle but it was something close. "Jess."

"Hmm?" He nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck, again kissing her skin.

"I'm trying to study," she said.

"I'm not denying you time to study," he smirked against her.

"Maybe not but that?" She turned to look at him and his eyes looked right into hers. "It's very distracting."

"So put the notes down and get distracted," he teased.

Rory almost groaned. "I can't. I was supposed to study this sooner but then Anna came and I've known about this test for a week."

"Anna was here almost a week ago," he said. "Why not study when she left?"

She didn't answer immediately. If she told him why, she'd have to get into the Logan thing and she did not want to bring that up right now. Not after last night and his finding out his father came to Stars Hollow. One thing at a time, she told herself. Don't give him too much.

"Just too much other things to do," she replied nonchalantly.

"Like your boyfriend?" He suggested as he went back to pressing his lips to her skin.

"Jess," she half laughed and groaned. "You're making it really hard to concentrate."

"Concentrating might not be the only thing that's -"

"Jess!" She laughed definitely now. "Please. I really need to remember this."

"And I work tonight thanks to Uncle Luke giving me the dinner shift," he said. "You can study later. I promise."

She sighed in thought. "Maybe."

His fingers trailed her arm, over her long sleeves that she wore today for the cold. "You can come sit at the diner, I'll give you coffee and pie and bring your books. I promise I will not distract you."

Another laugh escaped her. "You do know I can tell when you're lying, right?"

"That obvious?" He smirked.

Rory nodded. "Just a little."

"Fine, you can study wherever you want as long as it's tonight and not during my time off," he suggested.

"Just let me finish this part," she said.

Jess sat back on the couch and watched her for a moment. It never managed to escape him how beautiful she was. For some reason, she didn't see it and he didn't understand why she didn't. He was positive he'd never seen anyone more beautiful than Rory Gilmore.

She read intently and made a face, grabbing her highlighter. Her hands held it over the text in front of her then drew a straight line across it. He watched her even more. Rory must have felt his eyes on her and she turned to look over at him.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Nothing," he shrugged.

"You're watching me," she stated.

"Maybe," he shrugged again and this time, he hid his face in her neck, resuming his earlier activity.

"Why are you watching me?" She wondered, almost wanting to smile. When Jess didn't answer, she continued.

"Is it really that you're that eager for me to finish?" No answer again. "I promise I'll be done and I'll even stop by the diner later. You can give me coffee and pie and make moon eyes at me as my mom would say. I'd of course do them back and if she was there, she'd tease me mercilessly about it and -"

"Ror?" His head popped back in front of hers. "I'm doing some of my best work here and you're just talking right through it."

Her face softened at him and he smiled at her. She knew she was done studying the second the smile appeared. She couldn't resist his smile most of all.

It was her who leaned first. She closed the distance between the two of them immediately. Jess kissed her back furiously. Her body turned to her so the angle was better as his own turned, too, to make sure she didn't need to move too much.

There was long kisses and quick kisses, giggles and smiles. Rory's hands came up on both sides of Jess' face as she held him to her. His hands went to her waist, brushing at the skin between her shirt and her jeans. She shivered at his cold hands but didn't care.

Before either really processed it, she had adjusted herself better on her mother's couch. Her head lie with the side pillows, over the arm rest and his body moved to line up with hers.

The kisses continued, their mouths only escaping for milliseconds just to breath. Rory smiled the next time they pulled apart. "I think it's safe to say you're definitely feeling better now."

"It's hard not to with you around," he replied.

His lips went for hers again before she could make any kind of comment back about how cheesy that was. Her teeth nipped at his lower lip, Jess managed a grin at her before he kissed her even harder, effectively stopping her love bites.

Cold hands now trailed further up her skin to under her shirt. Another shiver escaped her and he almost moved his hand and himself right off of her. When he pulled back, Rory shook her head and pulled him to her again.

Her hands were in his hair now, feeling the small curls at the base of his neck. He made a small sound and she smiled. It always turned him on even more when she touched his hair.

The action had a consequence. Jess sat up, bringing Rory with him and he sat them both up. Their lips remain joined but now Rory had the upper hand. This time, she laid him down below her. The kiss intensified, as if they had found something to eat after days of starving.

Rory let him lift her shirt over her head. A warning buzzed in her head about how they were in her mother's living room but a reminder that it was right in the middle of Lorelai's workday yelled back at the nagging. She didn't want to think about that. She just wanted to keep going.

Jess' shirt came next. It felt almost satisfying to be able to run her hands down his chest. Rory pulled herself apart for a moment, to look at him. He watched her curiously. He wasn't used to her being the one who needed a moment to believe he was there with her.

Rory's lips crashed to his again. The desire was stronger than even five minutes ago. Jess was well aware of where they were and while she was blocking out the thoughts, his seemed to overwork. He lifted her up as best as his could and held her body to him.

There was no questions about what he was doing or where they were going. Rory seemed to know and she just let him carry her to her bedroom.

…..

"So,"

Lane stood right in front of Jess. He looked up at her from his book with a confused expression. "Yes?"

"How are you?" She asked.

His expression stayed in confusion. "Why?"

"Because of last night," she sat in the stool beside him.

"Huh," Jess said and went back to his book.

She couldn't take it anymore. "Well?"

"Well what?" He looked at her again. "I haven't seen him again if that's what you're wondering. He's probably miles away by now, back to whatever hellhole he came from."

"You mean you didn't see him?" Lane frowned.

"Did I just say I didn't?" He questioned whether or not he really spoke out loud.

"Yes, but -" she cut herself off. "Oh."

Now Jess was the curious one. "Oh what?"

"I saw him today," she said. "At Weston's."

"Weston's," Jess scoffed and again went back to his book. "Well, that figures. He's probably stuck here and decided it's better to avoid the place his abandoned son and abandoned son's uncle are."

Lane shook her head. "I think he's avoiding Luke."

"Why?" He asked. "Did you talk to him again? What were you doing at Weston's anyway? You're not betraying us, are you?"

"I was walking past," she explained. "And I saw him in the window so I did a double take and went back."

"And?" He asked.

"And what?"

"Nothing else happened?" He wondered and she shook her head. "When was this?"

"This afternoon," Lane remembered. "Maybe around 1,1:30."

Right. Of course it was around the time Jess was having sex with Rory in her mother's house. He swore under his breath. "Fuck."

"I'm sorry," she defended. "I thought you were off. I thought you might have seen him."

"I was with Rory," he told her.

"Oh," she said then more knowingly repeated herself. "Oh!"

"Do you think he's still here?" Jess asked her in a whisper.

Lane seemed sad. "I don't know. I mean, he's still here now. That's a sign, right?"

Jess nodded absently. He wasn't sure what he even expected to happen if he met the guy. But a part of him liked knowing the option to meet him was actually there.

"What's a sign?" Luke asked as he appeared behind Lane.

"Uh -"

Lane didn't know how to answer so Jess just blurted it out. "Jimmy might still be here. Lane saw him at Weston's earlier."

"Oh," Luke resisted his mouth drop and the anger that clearly wanted to show right after.

"Yeah," Jess agreed to the dumbfounded expression on the older man's face. "Exactly."

"Do you think he's going to come back here?" Luke asked his nephew.

Jess shook his head. "I don't know and I don't care. He left me. He shouldn't be able to just come in like this."

Lane and Luke stood in shock as Jess walked right away, obviously upset. Luke whispered to Lane once he was gone. "He's not doing so well with this."

"No," she shook her head now. "He's hiding it."

"Do you think Rory knows?" Luke wondered.

"She knows his dad is here," she replied. "But about how he's feeling? I'm not sure."

They both looked over to Jess who now took orders from a table and walked back to Cesear with the pad. He didn't notice the looks he got as he went over to another table. "Tell her to keep an extra eye on him, all right?"

"Will do," she agreed.

Luke walked away and went back to work. Lane stood there for a moment, wondering just how much Rory knew about what he was going through and how he felt. She worried for her friends and hoped they would be all right.

…..

Rory opened the door to the Dragonfly slowly. It was still busy though not as busy as it would have been earlier. That was part of why she had avoided a visit. Besides, she had to study even though a very naked Jess had ended up distracting her. She ducked her head as the blush formed but collected her thoughts as she walked to the front desk.

"Hey, Michel," Rory put her palms on the edge of his desk.

The Frenchman looked at the spawn of his boss with almost distaste. "And what can I help you with, little Lorelai?"

Rory smiled. "I am looking for my mom. Is she around?"

"Somewhere," he waved off. "Though my guess is she's in the kitchen, gossiping with Sookie."

"My mom does not gossip," she told him. "She shares information."

"Yes, of course, it's that innocent," he said.

Rory resisted the urge to laugh. "You know, Michel, she's told me some stories about you."

"They're not true!" He instantly yelled.

"Oh?" Her eyebrow rose. "So then that story about you telling at the cute waiter - her words, not mine - they're not true?"

"He was serving wrong!" He sighed.

She held her mouth together to hold in her reaction. "Uh-huh. Not true, huh?"

"Go annoy someone else, little Lorelai," he said.

"Will do, Mr. Gerad," she saluted as she walked away and towards the kitchen. Their banter was always one of her favorite things about coming to the inn. It definitely helped keep her thoughts off of other things.

Rory pushed open the door to the kitchen and was surprised to not find either Lorelai or Sookie there. There was plenty of people in there but the two she expected most were missing.

"Hey, guys?" She called to the people, feeling guilty she didn't know any of their names.

"Yes?" One came right to her, he looked young and kind of cute. He seemed like he liked her.

"Do you know where my mom is?" She asked and was answered with a confused expression. "Lorelai Gilmore. The woman who runs the place."

"Oh, Lorelai," he understood now. "No, I don't but if you see her, tell her to tell Sookie to come back."

"Right," she nodded. "Thanks, anyway."

The man in front of her stayed in front of her. "You're welcome."

Rory nodded and headed out. That was...weird. She shook her head and was almost out of the dining area when someone caught up to her, calling out "Wait."

She turned and saw one of the waiters who had been in a corner of the kitchen. "Yes?"

"Lorelai is upstairs," he explained. "As is Sookie."

"Upstairs?" She wondered. "What are they doing upstairs?"

"I'm not sure but I did see them go up say a half hour ago," he said.

"Thank you," she smiled and turned around to leave.

"Don't think too forward of Gregory but I think he likes you," the man said.

"Gregory?" She asked as she turned around. Then she realized that must be the name of the one who tried to answer her.

"Yeah," he smiled. "He usually keeps to himself. It's very easy to tell when he likes someone because they're the only people he approaches first.'

Rory felt a little bad for the guy. "Tell him I'm flattered, really but I have a boyfriend."

He nodded. "I will."

She nodded too and officially walked away and to the stairs. That was definitely weird, she thought. Slowly she climbed the stairs. Only one door was slightly open, as if it did not contain guests. She went to the door and knocked. There was no answer so she decided it was safe to push it open.

And there they were, Lorelai and Sookie sat with their legs laid out on the guest bed. They had popcorn between them and were very surprised to be caught. Especially by Rory of all people.

"Hey!" Lorelai shook out of her surprise and was now happy to see her daughter.

"Hi," she said back hesitantly.

"What are you doing here?" Lorelai asked. "Paris got to her boyfriend's all right?"

"He's not her boyfriend but yes," she answered. "I think there's another thing that needs to be addressed though here."

"What's that?" Sookie asked, speaking for the first time.

"What's going on?" Rory asked casually.

"Dark Shadows is on," Sookie told her.

"Oh," she said as if that explained it. "And what about work?"

"We're going back after this episode," Lorelai said. "It's almost over."

"Uh-huh," Rory said. "I'm gonna pretend this isn't weird just like I'm pretending what happened in the kitchen wasn't weird."

"What happened in the kitchen?" Lorelai wondered.

"Nothing," she laughed. "But this seems like there is a story."

"Sookie wanted time for herself," Lorelai answered.

Sookie nodded. "And then I saw dark shadows was on and I love dark shadows."

"And so do I," Lorelai chimed in.

"So we started watching episodes together," Sookie finished. "Because they only air when we're here."

"Perfectly reasonable," Rory nodded and crossed her arms.

"I knew it'd sound stupid," Sookie said defeatedly.

"It's not stupid," Lorelai told her but turned to her daughter. "And what are you doing here? You're not visiting the boyfriend?"

"Boyfriend's working," she shook her head. "I'm gonna be heading there later but I got to bring my books because I have studying to do still."

"It's Thanksgiving weekend," Lorelai corrected. "It's black Friday. I couldn't even go shopping today because the place was packed. Why are you studying?"

"Because I have an exam on Monday regardless of what weekend it is," she pointed out.

"Smart people sure take the fun out of holiday weekend," Lorelai told her.

"I know," she said. "Can we talk?"

"But the episode is almost over -" she stopped when she saw the look on her daughter's face. "I guess I saw it already. I know what happens."

Lorelai stood from the bed and followed Rory out into the hall. They went to the end of the hall where they were sure no one would hear. The doors were all closed so if anyone was inside, hopefully they didn't overhear.

"What is it?" Lorelai asked curiously. "Something wrong?"

"Jess' dad is in town," Rory said as she fiddled with her fingers nervously.

"His dad?" She questioned. "I thought his dad was out of the picture."

"Oh, he was," she nodded. "But now he wanted to see him."

"And did he?"

"Not yet. Not that I know of."

"How's he handling it?" She asked with a small sigh, a sad sigh.

Her daughter surprised her by letting out a small laugh in return. "That's the thing. He was really upset last night. That's why he didn't answer. I found him and we talked and today -"

"What?" Lorelai waited. "Today what?"

She didn't want to explain to her how Jess did a complete 180 from his mood last night or how they had sex while she was at work earlier. She sighed now. "Today he seemed better."

"Maybe he is better," she pointed out.

"I wouldn't be!" Rory exclaimed. "If Dad came in after being absent for 99% of my life, I wouldn't be."

"Okay," Lorelai processed. "So what then?"

"I want to help," she said sadly. "I want to help him through this but I have no idea how. I can be there for him but this - this is big. He needs more than that."

"Hun," she touched her daughter's arm to stop the pacing she just had just begun. "First of all, Jess loves you. I don't think he cares about the way you're there as long as you are there."

Rory stopped and stared at her mother. She tries breathing more even as she listened. When she didn't say anything, Lorelai continued.

"I'm sure he's not expecting you to know exactly how to handle this," she said. "It'd be crazy if you did. The best you can do is just be there and if he needs to talk or if he needs anything, just continue to be there."

"Right," she agreed. "But what if it's not enough?"

"Rory."

"No, mom," she shook her head. "You didn't see him last night. He was lost. He didn't think he was worth anything just because of what his father did. Add that to how strained he is with his mother - I'm scared, Mom."

Lorelai touched her daughter's arms again but this time in comfort. "What exactly are you scared of?"

Rory sighed sadly. "That he's gonna leave. That he's gonna think he's too worthless and that I deserve better and that he's better off alone than with anyone who loves him, including me and Luke."

"He's not going to think that," she told her.

"How do you know?" She whispered.

"Because I've seen the way he looks at you, kid," she smiled. "You think if Jess left, he had any chance of staying away?"

Rory smiled softly at that. "You think so?"

"I know so," she replied.

"Thanks, Mom," she breathed out in relief. "I think I should go. Go see Jess."

"Right," she agreed. "Studying."

Another nod. "Yeah."

"You know, I bet what really might cheer him up is helping you study," she said. "He could pretend he's the teacher and you'll be the student and you could role play!"

"And she's back," Rory chuckled. "I should go. You can go finish watching Dark Shadows."

"Nah, it's probably over by now," she waved off.

Rory nodded with a small smile. "Bye, Mom. And thanks."

"Anytime," she smiled.

They hugged goodbye and Rory was back down the stairs. Lorelai let out her own sigh and hoped she was right. She didn't want to have to kick her boyfriend's nephew's ass for if he left her daughter.

…..

"Another refill?" Jess smirked at his girlfriend as he stood over her with the coffee mug.

She smiled up at him gratefully. "Yes, please."

"As you wish," he poured the coffee into her cup which she eagerly took a sip of.

"You know," she started. "You don't have to wait on me the whole time I'm here. I'm sure Lane and Luke wouldn't mind."

Jess shook his head. "Nah. I told them you're mine."

"Huh," she smirked.

"Hey, that's my word and my smirk," he pointed a finger at her.

"Are they yours too?" She teased.

"You are so lucky you're my girlfriend," he warned teasingly.

"And don't I know it," she took another drink from her mug.

He smirked down at her again, this time more affectionately. His thumb brushed over her hand that held her coffee and she smiled back with the same expression.

Just as Jess walked away from her, he saw someone outside. They looked vaguely familiar and an instant later, it clicked. The person walked away from the diner and Jess reacted on reflex. He put the coffee pot down and rushed to the door and outside.

Luke was slow to follow but he stopped once he noticed he couldn't see Jess out in the night. He turned to Rory worriedly. "What just happened?"

"I don't know," she shivered. The cold from the door had reached her and she gripped her hands tighter to her coffee.

"He saw his dad," Lane said as she came up beside them.

Rory now moved her head quickly to outside. Both her and Luke were ready to go out there. Lane put hands in front of both of them. Luke looked at her questionably. "What?"

"He has to do this alone," she said as she walked away, trusting them to let him have this time.

Luke seemed to agree, as much as he wanted to go out there and scream at the guy. He walked away, leaving Rory to stare out the window. She sighed and went back to her half eaten pie with one last look out into the darkness.

…..

"Hey!" Jess called out to his father.

Jimmy stopped and turned around slowly. The moment he could see his face, despite the dark and despite the moonlight, Jess inhaled and exhaled a loud breath. This was his first real look at the man he came from.

"I take it you know who I am by now," Jimmy stated.

Jess nodded as slow as Jimmy's turn around had been. "Lane told me."

"Is that her name?" He wondered. "We didn't exactly exchange names, beside mine at least."

"Don't be a smart ass," Jess said, his anger on the tip of his tongue.

"Right," Jimmy surrendered. "Sorry."

"What are you doing here?" He crossed his arms over his chest. He had forgotten his jacket in the rush to catch Jimmy that he forgot also how cold it was out.

"I wanted to see you," Jimmy sighed. "See how you're doing, if you're okay. I missed a lot."

"Yeah, you did," he agreed. "Twenty years actually."

Jimmy sighed, unsure what to say or do. He seemed uncomfortable. "I don't know what the right move is."

"The right move would have been to not have left," Jess retorted.

"You're right," he agreed but made no apology for it, either.

"Why did you stick around?" He asked. "You saw me. Lane found you out. Why bother staying?"

"I don't know," he said.

There was silence between them. Intensity hung in the air, almost choking Jess. He waited impatiently. He wanted to know more, to ask his questions but his mouth couldn't form the words.

Jimmy didn't seem to be much better. He reached into his pocket and felt around. He came up empty. "Do you have something to write with? Or to write on?"

Jess reached into his own pocket and pulled out his order pad, pen included. "Yeah."

"Can I -?"

"Yeah. Here."

Jimmy took the items from Jess and used his hand as something to lean on. When he finished, he handed them both back to Jess. He looked over them with more questions forming in his head.

"This is an address," he said.

Jimmy nodded. "For California."

"I see that," he said as he finally looked up. "To what?"

"To my home," he clarified. He shoved his hands into his pocket uneasily. "I'm no good at this. Showing up. But in case you ever wanted to, you know, come see me -"

"You're giving me your California address to come visit you?" Jess asked in surprise.

"Well, yeah," he said.

Jess stared down at the paper in his hand. "I did not expect that."

"I'm gonna go back," Jimmy told him and he looked up. "To California. I have a life there now and a job. You'd like it. I hope you consider it."

"I'll think about it," he told him honestly. What he didn't expand on was how much he had to think about it.

Jimmy nodded and began to walk away. "Bye, Jess."

"Bye, Jimmy," he said as he watched his father walk away.

His feet stayed rooted in spot for a moment, Jimmy had faded into the darkness by now. He took a deep breath, shoved the address into his back pocket that didn't carry a book and walked back to the diner.

 **A/N: I want to try to move the story along a little to get to the timing of certain episodes. The next chapter won't pick up directly after this but it won't be pushed aside either. It's all in the plans. Also, thank you everyone who reads and reviews. I'm dedicating this chapter to Yota and Sal. Thanks for all your words and compliments and just for being great friends. It's people like you who make me keep writing.**


	36. One month later

**A/N: this is for everyone who sticks with me, not just as a writer.**

"You're seriously going to a New Years Eve party thrown by the people we go to school with?"

"Yes, I am," Rory told Paris. "I'm bringing Jess and Lane is taking Zach here. We're gonna make a thing out of it."

"And you think this will be a good idea?" She could imagine the eyebrow raise her friend gave her through the phone.

"You don't?" She asked.

"Not if you consider who we go to school with," she scoffed.

Rory resisted a smile. "And what's wrong with who we go to school with, Paris?"

"What isn't?" She asked.

Now she did laugh. "Any other reasons you can think of?"

"Logan," Paris pointed out.

Rory froze. She felt herself build a wall up from the mention of her ex-something. "What about him?"

"What if he's there?" She questioned. "What if he and Jess interact?"

"So?"

" _So?_ "

"I don't think I'll have to worry about that," she shook her head. "Jess doesn't know who Logan is and in case you forget, he doesn't randomly go up to strangers for a chat."

"And if Logan comes up to you?" She pushed.

"Then I'll deal with him," she said. "I can be nice to someone I was involved with. Remember Dean?"

"This isn't the same as Dean," Paris went on. "You slept with Logan. He has feelings for you. And you're going to a party he could possibly be at with your new boyfriend."

"I know all of this," Rory rubbed her forehead in frustration then curled her legs under her as she sat on her bed in Stars Hollow.

"Have you told Jess yet?" She asked.

Rory sighed, she knew what she meant. "No. Not yet."

Paris probably nodded on the other end. "Why not?"

"It hasn't been right," she admitted. "The stuff with his dad happened and you know what? He still hasn't told me about what happened."

"Is that what's bothering you?" She asked, in full therapy mode now.

"I don't know," she confessed. "Maybe. He has every right to his privacy. But I just - I wanted to help him and I have a crappy dad. Maybe it's not the same but it could do something maybe."

"That's a lot of maybe's," she commented. "You want my advice?"

"Does that it matter?" She joked.

"You need to ask him," she told her. "No more tiptoeing around the subject. Ask him about his dad and then tell him about Logan. You both can't keep these things inside. It's gonna come back to bite you in the ass."

"I don't want to push him," she said. When Paris asked why, she continued in almost a whisper but her friend heard her. "What if I push too hard and he leaves? If it was me, I'd bolt out the door. I don't want to lose him, not for this."

"Why do you think you're gonna lose him?" Paris wondered. "Because of before? Because he left Florida and he went to New York or is there something you're not telling me?"

"Because -" she sighed. "I don't know."

"Rory, if you're feeling insecure about anything with Jess -"

"I'm not insecure," she said. "I'm overworrying. The not knowing what happened makes me think something did happen."

"Something bad?" she could hear the frown.

She shook her head. "Just something. And we've been good, really good. This past month has been amazing. It's probably my mind telling me I'm too happy right?"

"Rory," Paris' voice softened, something it doesn't usually do for everyone and everything. "You have to tell him how you feel. Even if it's the tiniest thing, you have to tell him."

She nodded, closed her eyes and pressed her lips together. "Okay. You're right."

"Of course I'm right," she said proudly. "Who do you think you're talking to here, Gilmore?"

"Thanks, Paris," she said in a low voice.

"Anytime."

And she could tell her friend really meant it.

…..

Luke resisted the urge to tease. "You're going to Yale? For a new year's Eve party?"

"Quit it," Jess warned from the other side of the counter in the diner.

"I'm just asking," his uncle said. "But really, you're going to a new year's Eve party at Yale?"

"Yes," he answered. "Go on. Get your comments out."

"I have no comments," he told him. "It's just unexpected."

"Rory wanted to go," he explained. "Some of her old roommates from freshmen year invited her so I offered to go so she wouldn't be alone."

"And what if she goes to talk to someone?" Luke wondered. "You'd be okay alone at one of those?"

"I've been to parties before," he pointed out. "And Lane is coming, too. She's bringing her boyfriend."

"So if Rory leaves to talk to someone, you're just gonna be a third wheel to Lane and Zach?" He asked.

He imagined the idea and frowned. "God, I hope not."

"Do you think she told Lorelai yet?" Luke lowered his voice.

Jess shrugged. "I'd guess but who knows? Christmas was pretty packed."

"Christmas was more suspicious acts from the elder Gilmore's since they canceled their holiday party," he pointed out.

"Which led our significant others to make a Christmas week of festivities," Jess said in a monologue tone.

Luke smirked at him. "It's times like this when I see the relation between us."

Jess chuckled at that. "I'm just going along with Rory. She calls the shots for holidays. If it was up to me, we'd stay home, get a little drunk and -"

The look on Luke's face cut Jess off. "You forgot who you're having this conversation with, didn't you?"

"Little bit," he admitted with a smirk.

Luke left behind the counter and went to help new customers that had just walked in. Jess leaned forward in one of the stools. His shift had just ended for the day which was why he was casually bugging his uncle instead of working.

He wondered if Rory was home right now or if she had plans. Jess decided maybe he would go out instead of sitting around and being interogated. Upstairs sat his jacket, the denim one Rory had given him as a late birthday gift.

That night still stood out in his mind. He really didn't expect any of it. Hell, he hadn't expected her. It was too cold our today to wear, the end if December cold bit too hard for denim. Instead, he grabbed a more weather appropriate jacket, green with a kind of puff to it.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and found that paper with the California address on it. Jess stared down at it, unable to process it. That paper was kind of an escape route. To escape his mother, her new husband, the fear of failing classes, being stuck in a diner job even if he didn't hate it. There was the fear of writer's block and worst of all, the fear of disappointing or hurting Rory.

But to go to Jimmy Mariano to escape all that? What if that was the cause for the hurt and disappointment? What if that was the reason he failed the classes or couldn't get ideas for his book? What if it was reason he stayed in the small town with the diner job? He wasn't sure if anything anymore . He sure as hell wasn't sure if he should use this address.

Quickly, he shoved the paper back into his pocket. With a sigh, he headed back downstairs, now with his jacket and avoided the looks he got from Miss Patty and Taylor who now had a table in the diner. He wasn't in the mood for lewd comments or judgements.

…

"Mom?" Rory walked out of her room and stood in her doorway.

"Yeah, kid?" Lorelai looked at her from her seat at the kitchen table. She had papers and folders spread out in front of her.

"You're working," she stated. "I don't want to to bother you."

"You couldn't bother me," she smiled. "What's going on?"

"Tomorrow is New Year's Eve," Rory began.

"Yes," Lorelai nodded. "I'm aware. What about it?"

"Jess is taking me to a party at Yale," she said. "With Lane and Zach."

"Oh," she seemed surprised.

"So we can't do our usual binge watch for the holiday," she continued.

Lorelai nodded. "Oh."

Rory moved herself out of the doorway and sat in front of her mom. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" She asked. "You're twenty years old. You can go to a party if you want to, kid. You don't have to stay with your mom."

"Really?" She wondered.

Lorelai laughed once and brushed the hair away from her daughter's face. "I think I raised you to be close to me if you don't see that."

"Oh," Rory frowned. "So it's really okay?"

"Sweets, my firstborn and only born, I love you but you are allowed to have a life outside of mommy," she answered.

Her daughter smiled at her. "I was worried."

"About what?" She found herself asking.

"You don't think -" she paused then continued. "You don't think anything's changed between us, right?"

"You know," Lorelai sighed. "I'm gonna be honest. A month ago, I was worried that it was. It felt like you were slipping away a little bit. Partly because you have Jess and this new life."

Rory interrupted. "I don't have a new life."

Lorelai shook her head. "I know that now. Back then, I felt kind of left out. I thought you were getting too old to share things with me and that maybe we wouldn't be as close anymore. But it's been over a month now and I know it was just the start."

"What do you mean?" She asked curiously. "The start of what?"

Lorelai reached out and held her daughter's hand in hers. "It was the start of your relationship. It was falling in love and worrying about approval. It's that honeymoon phase that if you're with the right person, it lasts forever. It wasn't you swaying away from me. It was you balancing me and Jess."

"And how'd I do?" She smiled.

"You did great," she smiled back. "Next time, I'm gonna worry less though."

"Next time?" Rory chuckled lightly. "As in a next boyfriend? Because I think this is it."

She smiled even softer at her. "That you feel that strongly, hun, I want it to be it for you."

"I do," she nodded. "It is."

"It's really good to hear that," she admitted.

"Yeah?" Rory wiped at her eye, not noticing a stray tear had fallen.

"Yeah," Lorelai squeezed her hand tighter. "You love him and I know you're both still so young but I see you two. You two look at each other like me and Luke look at each other."

Rory squeezed her hand back, another tear dropped. "Thanks, Mom."

"There is one more dilemma, though," she pointed out.

"What dilemma?" She sat up straighter in her chair, worried.

"You're going to a party on a definite kissing holiday," Lorelai stated. "We need to find you the perfect outfit."

Rory beamed at her mother brightly. "You got any ideas?"

…..

The drive down had been easy but traffic filled. To say Jess hadn't gotten frustrated with some of the other drivers was an understatement. Each time he felt his temper flare, Rory reached over and would rub his leg in comfort.

They didn't notice Lane's eyes on them as she sat in the backseat. Zach kept quiet, unsure what to say. He didn't know Jess well but he still wasn't sure what to say to hold a conversation with him and the girls together. When they finally got there, the place was decorated so much, you'd have thought it was a Hollywood party.

Rory gasped in surprise at the gorgeous lights. Jess smirked as he let her out of the car and once again, he took in how stunning she looked. Her dress was silver and it shined with a sparkle. It was skinny straps and the neckline had a small V but enough to be noticeable. It felt to above her knees and was just right for her to move. He felt a sense of pride in knowing not only was that his date but his girlfriend.

Inside the four of them got drinks. Of course there was alcohol which Lane stayed away from. Over a year ago, she'd been at a party where she called her mother and told her about her then-boyfriend Dave and prom. After that, she tried to stay away. Zach grabbed her a soda from the ice cooler and she smiled in thank you.

Jess grabbed himself a beer and gestures to Rory. She began to shake her head but then to her boyfriend's surprise, took his bottle in her hands.

They were soon greeted by people Jess did not know. Rory seemed to know them, she called one Janet and he assumed it was one of the girls who had invited her to the party. They gasped over her dress and Rory finally introduced Jess. He shook their hands and smiled and they gave her a look to show they approved.

…..

"Hey."

Rory slid into the seat across from Jess at one of the lone tables. "Finally free?"

She looked around first before she answered. "For the moment, yes."

"You seem very popular tonight," he commented.

Rory laughed. "No, I don't. I just keep running into people I know."

"Isn't that part of the popular definition?" He asked.

"I'm sorry I keep being taken away," she sighed.

Jess made a face as he shook his head, a face that said he understood. "Price I pay for having you as my girlfriend."

She crossed her arms with a smirk. "And what price is that?"

"You," he nodded towards her. "Gorgeous, friendly girlfriend who happens to work on the newspaper and is insanely talented."

"Uh-huh," she nodded in disbelief. "And what about you?"

"What about me?" He asked.

"You," now she nodded her head towards him. "Handsome, antisocial boyfriend who is secretly writing a novel."

"I'm not writing in secret," he defended as she raised her eyebrow at him. "I'm writing and not showing anyone, there's a difference."

"Uh-huh," she smiled. "When can I read it?"

"When it's finished," he told her.

"You know," she leaned closer to him. "I have ways of persuading you."

"You think so?" He leaned closer, too.

She nodded, a playful look on her face. "I know so."

"You know, I could be convinced now if you really want to read it," he replied.

"Hmm," she pretended to think. "You sure you're up for it? I can think of a few things that will really convince you."

"Considering you're halfway there just from that dress alone, I have no doubts you'll win," Jess said.

Rory blushed. "Really?"

"Have you seen yourself?" He asked her. "You look amazing. From the first second I saw you, I had to stop myself from lifting you over my shoulder and taking you somewhere very private."

"Jess," she blushed redder.

Suddenly a voice shouted, a voice she recognized. "Rory Gilmore!"

"Who's that?" Jess asked her, seeing his girlfriend froze, no longer the blushing or teasing girl she'd just been seconds ago.

"Um -" she began as the owner of the voice came closer.

"Rory!" The unmistakable Australian accent rang clear in his voice. "My, how lovely to see you!"

Rory stood up and faced him. "Finn! Hi."

"How are you, darling?" He asked her as he hugged her.

"I'm good," she hugged him back. Jess watched curiously and when she backed away, she gave him a quick look. "You?"

"I'm quite well," he told her. "We've missed you around. Where have you been, love?"

"Busy," she replied.

"Busy?" He wondered.

"Uh, Finn," she grabbed his arm and faced him to Jess. She motioned for Jess to stand so he stood up, wiping off his pants as he did. "This is Jess, my boyfriend. Jess, this is Finn. He's a part of this group I wrote a piece about for the Daily News."

"Ssh, love," he teased. "We can't tell everyone about it, can we?"

Rory laughed. "Right."

Jess held out his hand for Finn to shake it. "Nice to meet you."

"You, too," he turned back to her after they pulled apart. "Have you seen Logan this evening?"

"Logan? No, I - I haven't seen him," she shook her head. "Why?"

"I'm sure he'd love to see you," Finn explained.

"He's here?" She froze.

"Somewhere," he looked around past her head to around the room. "I seem to have lost him in the crowd."

"Oh, I'm sure he'll turn up," she laughed uncomfortably. Jess noticed but said nothing.

"I'll be sure to tell him I spotted you," he told her. "Right now, I see Rosemary over there. Maybe tonight she'll finally give me a chance."

"Good luck," she patted his arm as he headed off in Rosemary's direction.

"So Finn's a friend of Logan's?" Jess asked once he was gone.

She slowly turned to him. "Yes."

"Huh," he sat back down.

"What?" She sat down, too. "What's that 'huh'?"

Jess shrugged. "It's nothing. Just you seemed cozy with your ex's friend, that's all."

"Jess," she said his name so differently than just moments before. "We're not cozy. We're friends."

"So that you and Logan - that you slept with him, has nothing to do with the friendship?" He asked.

"No," she defended. "It doesn't. I met Finn before anything happened between me and Logan. We were friends before it."

Jess nodded once. "Right. Of course."

She looked at him puzzledly. "Are you jealous?"

"What?" He was sure if he had a drink right now, he'd have spit it out. "Why would I be jealous? Because you're friends with a friend of a guy you had sex with?"

"Ssh," she said as she glanced around. "And yes. Come on, this doesn't seem like you."

"And what am I?" He asked.

"You're not this," she held her hand, palm out towards him. "This guy right now, he's not my boyfriend."

"Huh," he said. "That's good to know, isn't it?"

Jess stood up and she shot up with him. "Where are you going?"

"I think I'm gonna take a walk," he told her.

"Wait," she said. "We need to talk. Don't do this. Not tonight."

"Rory, I'm just taking a walk," he told her.

Her eyes shined as he saw her tear up. "Don't go."

"I'll be right back," he promised, voice softer than before. "Just...I need a minute, okay? I need to clear my head before I say something stupid."

"Okay," she nodded. "Okay."

He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead before he turned and walked away. As Jess disappeared from her sight, Rory sank back down into the chair she had been in. Her eyes looked around the room and landed on the one and only Logan Huntzberger. She looked away quickly and wiped at her eyes.

Once her eyes were scrubbed as fresh as she could, she stood up with more confidence. She needed to find Lane.

 **A/N: I did not originally have that end scene play out like that. It got a little away from me but what's literati without moments like that?**


	37. New year's

It didn't take Jess long to collect his thoughts. He wasn't even sure why he needed to. There was a strange feeling inside of him as he remembered how he felt when he overheard Lorelai telling Luke about Rory and Logan.

It was stupid, he told himself. Because it's not like it was even Logan who was there. It was a friend of Logan's. That shouldn't be a threat, even if there needed to be one. He guessed it was just a reminder that while he had his head in his ass, Rory had tried to move on with another guy.

He had no right to be upset about that. After all, he had tried the same thing with Shane. But Shane was far out of the picture and the whole thing was a reminder that while she was his girlfriend now and the other guy was the past, she still went to school with him.

Jess knew he needed to catch a grip. He took a few breathes, prayed silently for a pack of cigarettes to appear. When they didn't, because how could they? He joked to himself, he opened the doors back up and walked inside.

His eyes searched where he left her. It'd be stupid to think Rory didn't move from her seat. He had wished she hadn't though just so he could find her. Of course she wasn't there but it didn't take long to spot her anyway.

Rory stood in a corner of the room, almost masked by other party goers. She seemed in depth in conversation with Lane. Zach was nowhere in sight which led him to believe the conversation they were having was about him. That and Rory looked upset. He mentally cursed himself for the jackass he was and decided to make it right.

His walk was slow, deliberate. There was a determination in him to get to her. Crowds of people were between them but Jess didn't care. When he finally reached her, he motioned for Lane not to tell Rory and wrapped his arms around her waist.

She instantly knew it was him and leaned her head into him. Lane smiled and excused herself, saying she needed to find Zach. Rory laid her arms over Jess' and looked down at their hands.

"I'm a jackass," he said to her shoulder.

"Mmm," she murmured, not telling him if he was right or wrong.

"And I'm sorry," he continued.

That time Rory answered but first she moved herself out of his arms and faced her boyfriend. "I'm sorry, too."

"You have no reason to be sorry," he told her. "I overreacted. He's a friend. I don't even have a right to be upset about Logan let alone his friends."

"You were jealous," she stated.

Jess nodded. "I don't want to be."

"You don't have to be," Rory put both hands on either side of his face. "I'm with you, okay? It doesn't matter if they're here or wherever. I love you and I want to be with you."

"I know," he held his hands around her back. "I'm gonna work on being better at this, I promise. I'm not good at relationships, Rory."

"You're doing pretty good to me," she smiled.

"Not tonight," he said. "But I wanna make it up to you."

"How?" She asked.

"Dance with me," he replied.

Jess' face looked unsure. He worried she'd say no after his walkout. But instead, she smiled softly at him and took his hand. "Of course."

The song wasn't particularly a slow song. Jess wasn't even sure what song it was even. It was a pop song, that much he knew. For once, he didn't care about questioning the music choices. Not as he held Rory close to him in his arms.

She leaned her head on his shoulder for a moment before she realized she couldn't not say something. Rory's head lifted and she stared into his brown eyes, brushed his hair away from his face and smiled. "I have something to tell you."

"What is it?" He asked curiously. He had no idea.

"I'm not sure how you'll take it," she said in a shakier voice, already losing the little confidence she gained seconds ago. "It might make things worse."

His thumb came under her chin and lifted it upwards. "Make what worse?"

"Before," she sighed as they continued to dance. "With Finn. Why you walked out."

"Is there something I'm missing about it?" He joked but his smile faded when he noticed her distraught expression. "Ror? Tell me what's going on."

"I do see Logan," she confessed. "At school. More than I expected to."

"Oh," his mind whirled. What was his pep talks to himself outside? What had he said? "And by see, you mean -?"

"Occasionally we bump into each other," she told him.

"Okay," Jess nodded. "I mean, I don't expect you to not see him. You go to the same school, he works on the newspaper."

Rory shook her head. "This one time we talked, he asked me if I still had a boyfriend."

"Which you said yes to," he added.

"Which I said yes to," she agreed. "There's more."

"What more?" He asked, almost regretting wanting to know.

"Logan...He told me he has feelings for me," she sighed. "He asked me if we could try to be together for real."

Emotions flashed over his face all at once. Rory couldn't catch any of them they flew by so quickly. His hands dropped from her body but hers didn't leave him. "Is he here still? I'm gonna find him."

"Jess," she finally moved her hands to either side of his face. His eyes looked directly into hers which was exactly what she had wanted. "Hey. Don't do it."

"The guy had you, casually might I add, while he had other girls," he said. "Then you get a boyfriend and he suddenly wants a relationship?"

"I don't think he really wants one," she said. "It's crazy, right? He's probably just trying to get under my skin."

"And is he?" He asked.

"Yes," she admitted. "Because I'm with you and he keeps trying to make me doubt that. What he doesn't know is nothing will make me doubt that."

His expression softened at her words and his hands moved to hold her at the waist. "You mean that?"

"Of course," Rory answered honestly. "You think I don't?"

"No," he shook his head. "No. I just - I guess I needed to hear it."

Her hands still held both sides of Jess' face. "Hey. I love you and that's a fact. I do not have feelings for Logan or anyone else that isn't you."

Jess smiled down at her. "I love you, too."

She smiled back in return as they both leaned forward. The kiss was supposed to be quick but it turned deeper than expected pretty quickly. "I have an idea."

"Yeah?"

"Let's push aside Logan for the night," she said. "Not even just the night. Let's be us and enjoy us. What do you think?"

"I think that sounds like the best idea I've ever heard," he told her. One thing was on his mind that he had to ask before it was pushed away, though. "I just have one question, though."

"Okay," she waited with hesitancy. "What is it?"

Jess breathed out once before he began. "Did you know he would be here tonight?"

"No," Rory told him the truth. "Paris suggested he might be but I didn't think he would. I thought this wouldn't be his kind of party so the idea of running into him didn't really cross my mind until Paris."

"So when you saw Finn…" he added.

"I was surprised," she admitted.

"Right," he nodded. "If you knew, though…"

"I'm not sure," she confessed. "I wanted to come and I wanted to bring you to a party that wasn't held by Stars Hollow. It would have taken a lot more though, insight from you. I'm so sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" He looked puzzled.

"Because I brought you here," Rory put her hands on his shoulders then down his arms only to rest them around him. "I should have considered Logan could be here and I'm sorry I didn't."

"What's done is done," he told her. "The only thing we can do now is have a great rest of the night, start 2005 the right way."

"I agree," she smiled as she snuggled herself into his arms.

…..

The rest of the night moved smoothly. Jess pushed away his earlier thoughts. He knew there was nothing to worry about and as long as he didn't screw it up, she would stay. It left him a content feeling to know she was in this just as much as he was.

Rory had excused herself to answer her phone at one point. He could hear her animatedly talking to her mother, though not sure of the exact words. Jess smiled to himself. Her energy kind of amazed him. He turned to one side and that was when he noticed he wasn't the only one watching Rory.

The guy had blonde hair and was dressed up much too nicely for just a college party. There was a look of fascination on his face as he watched her. It wasn't the same Jess' face held. This was different. He was in the middle of an internal debate if he should go over there or not when he heard someone beside him.

"My mom wants every detail of tonight apparently," Rory laughed as she reached him. "It's crazy. She had me explaining the entire decorations."

"Yeah?" He turned to her, giving his full focus on his girlfriend. "Did you tell her there was blood splattered on the walls, a bonfire, sacrifices to be made?"

"In some words," she smiled and put her arms around him.

"As long as some words don't include what a dumbass I am," he smirked.

"Was," she corrected. "And no. I love my mom but I don't need her over thinking little things."

Jess nodded but was quiet. His eyes caught that same blonde guy again, this time looked between both of them. "Rory? Do you know that guy?"

"What guy?" He nodded his head in the direction of the blonde and the answer to his question was obvious as soon as Rory looked. "Yeah."

"Who is it?" He asked when she didn't say more. "Is it really that bad? It can't be worse than how he's been staring at you for the last five minutes at least. He's actually still staring now. Come on, Ror."

"It's Logan," she sighed. "The guy standing over there staring at us is Logan."

"Oh," he whispered.

"Yeah," she agreed. "Oh."

"So that's why you didn't want to tell me," Jess stated. "Because of before."

Rory nodded. "I didn't want you be upset."

He put his arms around her waist. "Do I look upset?"

She frowned, confused. "No?"

"Rory, when I went outside before, I thought a lot," he explained. "Mostly, I did some mental self ass-kicking but I thought, too."

"Yeah?" She smiled slightly.

"You have a past," he went on. "Partly my fault because I was stupid but you do. I can't get upset about that. I have a past, too. We can either be dredge up who-slept-with-who or we can be here together in the present. I choose the present."

"Me, too," she agreed with a bigger smile then kissed him lightly.

When they pulled away, Rory risked a glance back to where Logan had stood. He was now gone and she breathed out in relief. Jess noticed and looked where she had, his own relief too.

"You really thought all that in the few minutes you were gone?" She wondered out loud.

Jess tugged her closer. "I thought it was pretty smart. You don't like it?"

"No, no," she shook her head, beaming. "I'm just a little surprised."

"I can be smart," he told her.

"I know," she replied seriously as someone caught her eye. "Hey, I see Lane. I'll be right back."

"All right," Jess said as he untangled them from each other and let Rory walk away. He watched her head towards Lane while Zach was nowhere in sight.

….

"What's going on?" Rory asked when she reached Lane. "Where's Zach?"

"He is the bathroom throwing up," Lane explained.

"Oh, no," she gasped. "What happened?"

"Let's just say the food did not agree with him or the amount of beers he had," she said. "I think we're gonna catch a cab. Go home."

"No," she protested. "It's not even midnight yet."

Lane seemed sad. "I'm not sure he's gonna last until midnight. Plus, kissing might be the furthest thing on our minds right now."

Rory frowned. "Well, okay. But take the car. We'll take a cab back."

"Really?" Lane asked.

"Really," she answered. "Go take care of Zach. We'll be fine."

"Okay," she caved and hugged her best friend. "Only if you're a hundred percent positive."

"I am," she let go of the hug. "Now go."

They said their goodbyes quickly. Lane rushed back to the bathroom Rory assumes Zach had been in. Jess watched curiously as his girlfriend walked back over to him.

"So?"

"Zach's sick," she told him when she got back. "I told her take the car back. Me and you will get a cab or something back. I'd rather her get him home."

He nodded. "That was a good idea."

"Yeah?" She wondered.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Besides, I have plans."

She beamed brighter. "Yeah?"

"I just have one question to ask," Jess said. "How attached are you to staying at this party?"

….

"I think I like this much better," Rory sighed as her boyfriend opened the door in front of her.

"Yeah?" He asked while he shut it behind him. "You mean, you didn't want to stay with all your fellow students?"

"I saw who I came to see," she turned to him. "Besides, you're my date. I'm not gonna say no to time with you, now am I?"

He smirked in return. "I hope not."

Rory let out a giggle as she wrapped her arms around Jess. His arms snaked around her waist and he was more sure than even an hour ago that getting a hotel room was a good idea. "It's almost midnight."

"You'd think with all the drama tonight, it'd be midnight tomorrow," Jess joked.

"You know I'm sorry right?" She apologized. "For Finn, being blindsided, for Logan watching…"

"Hey," he interrupted. "Don't worry about that."

Rory frowned. "You're really okay with it? Before?"

"Yes," he breathed. "I meant what I said, all right? I don't care about the past. This - this is what I care about. The present."

"Me, too," she agreed with a short kiss.

His eyes closed and opened for the kiss. "I wouldn't mind being the future, too, you know?"

"We'll see," she teased as she kissed him again.

The kiss got deeper, he tugged her body closer to his. Neither was sure where they ended and the other began. Jess' hands came up to her face as he cupped her cheeks. Rory made a noise he had heard few times before, he called it "the special noise" because it was for when she was in the mood the most of all.

"Jess?"

"Hmm?"

His mouth had pulled away from hers, his hands on her arms. Lips caressed over her cheek now leading to her neck. Rory's head tilted for him to gain better access and she almost forgot her question. "This was your plan, wasn't it? When you said you had plans -"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he smirked against her collarbone.

"Admit it," she told him.

Jess pulled himself away to look in her eyes. "Maybe I had a plan."

"I knew it," she laughed once. "You think you're cute, don't you? Being sneaky?"

"I think you think I'm cute which works for me," he played along.

Rory shook her head. "God. And you're lucky you're cute, too."

She pulled him closer this time, holding onto his face. The kiss ignited sparks that had been on fire all night. If either of them were gonna be cheesy, they'd say the real fireworks were here.

Rory tugged off his jacket and in return he tugged off hers. Her hands traced over his arms, feeling the small muscle beneath. Their lips never left each other's until she finally backed away much to Jess' protests.

"Wait," she said as she moved to unzip her dress. When it fell to her feet, she got a smug feeling at seeing the look on her boyfriend's face. "Now come here."

"Yes, ma'am," he agreed as his lips once again crashed to hers.

…

Sometime later, when the two of them finally noticed the time, Jess nudged Rory. "Hmm?"

"Happy new year," he whispered to her.

"Happy new year," she smiled back.

Jess planted a short kiss on her lips. "I guess we got more than a midnight kiss, huh?"

"Hush," she blushed. "And yeah...We did."

"You know," he wrapped his arms around her tighter, the blankets not letting him be close enough. "They say how you start the new year is the way you'll spend the year."

"Hmm," Rory murmured contently. "I like that."

"Me, too," he kissed her hair. "I wouldn't mind spending a whole year just like this."

"Me, either," she agreed. "Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Rory snuggled herself into his arms, moving aside the blankets that dared come between them. Jess smiled to himself, thoughts of how happy he finally felt overcame his mind. It was definitely looking to be a good year.

 **A/N: So sorry I didn't get this up sooner! Being sick really takes a lot out of you lo** l


	38. Christopher

**A/N: Now we're going more Rory centric as we hit 5x11.**

"Streetwalker."

"Too urban."

"Concubine."

"Anyone see Farewell, My Concubine? Beautiful film, gorgeous cinematography."

"I'm surprised you see such adult fare, Reverend."

"Well, what do you picture me watching every night, Taylor? The sound of music?"

Jess frowned at the whole conversation. He wasn't sure what it was about but all he could figure out was they were trying to find a polite way to say whore. Luke passed by him with a few empty plates so he turned to him.

"What are they doing?" Jess asked with a nod towards Taylor's table.

Luke looked over them while the conversation continued. "Scarlet woman."

"I like it."

"Too Nathaniel Hawthorne."

"Who?" Luke whispered to himself.

Jess heard his whisper. "Jeez, read a book."

"Harlot."

"Woman of accommodating morals."

"Too long."

"What about hot mutton?"

"I can't take this anymore," Jess shook his head and grabbed the coffee pot over to their table. "What are you talking about over here?"

"We're discussing the Revolutionary war reenactment if you must know," Taylor replied although he didn't seem too happy.

"And what does the Revolutionary war have to do with whores?" He raised his eyebrow.

"They're not whores," one man he didn't recognize said. "We're trying very hard to not use that word."

"Woman of accommodating morals," the Reverend repeated.

"That's too long," another man complained. "We need to use harlot."

"I'm liking Scarlet woman the most so far," Taylor chimed in.

Jess rolled his eyes. This made no sense. "Again, I ask what does this have to do with the Revolutionary war?"

"All right," he seemed to huff at Luke's nephew. "We made an interesting discovery of new evidence for the reenactment this year."

"New evidence," Luke appeared. "It's the same thing every year, Taylor. You reenact a time when these pig headed morons waited outside all night in the snow for a battle that never happened."

"Yes, but this year will be different," one of the men said.

Jess and Luke shared a look. "Okay. I'll bite. What's different?"

"Apparently, an English battalion was awaiting the return of their commanding general with plans for a big battle and our soldiers caught wind of this and blocked the high road," Taylor answered excitedly.

"So?" Jess said.

He sighed then continued. "So the general had to travel a lower road through town to reach his troops."

"So they kidnapped him?" Luke asked.

The men at the table laughed beside Taylor. "Oh, no. They were much slyer than that. They had a brave lady of the town use her wiles to draw the general to her rooms and keep him occupied. That delayed his arrival which allowed Lafayette to ambush the waiting troops."

"A hooker stopped the battle," Luke commented.

One of the man answered, "We're not calling her a hooker."

Another replied, "That's what we're trying to figure out now, what to call her."

"Jeez," Jess muttered under his breath and he could tell his uncle agreed.

Andrew, who had been silent since the Danes men came by, added, "She should be thin but not too thin."

"Know anyone to fit the bill?" Taylor asked.

"Not off hand," Luke went along. "But if I run into any moderately weighed whores in my travels, I'll let you know."

"They're not calling her a whore either," Jess pointed out.

"Then whatever they're calling her," Luke waved off as both he and Jess walked back to the counter.

The bells above the door chimed and in walked Lorelai. "I need coffee!"

"On it," Jess went to grab as a cup as his uncle kissed Lorelai quickly. He always tried to avoid seeing his uncle and girlfriend's mother's pda.

Lorelai saw Taylor's table and smiled to herself. "The war reenactment committee is meeting. Another wonderful by-product of snow."

"I wouldn't say that," Luke commented.

Jess placed the coffee in front of her. "Why, thank you, boy dating my daughter."

He smirked at that and went back to leaning on the counter, pulling out a book from his back pocket. This week, he was re-reading High Fidelity.

Lorelai noticed Luke giving a glare towards Taylor's table. "Why is the Reverend blushing?"

"You don't wanna know," he said.

She finished her coffee and stood up. "All right, I'm off. Got my coffee. Now I just need a donut for the walk and my kiss."

Luke kissed her quickly again as Jess grabbed the donut. He handed it to her and she smiled in thanks. Luke saw the table still stared at her so he whispered, "When you walk out of here, try not to walk too sexy."

"Right," she nodded. "You'll explain that to me later?"

"I always do," he said as Lorelai walked out of the diner, trying to be as unsexy as possible.

Jess chuckled. "Uncle Luke, I think you've got them eying your girlfriend to be the hooker."

"The whole thing is nuts," he shook his head. The diner seemed calm as of now so he turned to his nephew. "So what plans you got today?"

"Why?" He asked curiously.

"You got a class tonight, right?" He asked.

"Yes, I do," he looked down into his book.

"And?"

"And what?"

"So you're going to Hartford?" He asked. "Gonna stop by anywhere?"

"Is this your way of asking if I'm seeing Rory today?" He lifted his head out of the book.

"Maybe," he said casually. "Are you?"

"Was gonna," Jess shrugged. "We were gonna do something when her classes end, maybe get a late lunch or something. Why?"

"No reason," Luke shrugged now. "Just wondering."

"Gee, Uncle Luke, I don't remember you being this interested in my relationships before I met Rory," he teased.

"Well, she's different," he defended.

"I'm aware of that," Jess nodded. "What'd you think I was going to do, avoid her?"

"No, I -"

"You two are doing good, right?" He asked. "How long has it been?"

"Two months," he answered as he tried to turn back to his book, avoiding a conversation about his relationship with someone other than who he's dating.

"Wow," Luke said. "Two months is...Two months is good."

"How long are you and Lorelai dating, Uncle Luke?" He countered.

"Uh -" he was caught off guard at Jess asking him what he had asked.

"Huh," He nodded. "You don't know?"

"I know," he replied. "I didn't expect you to ask."

"Neither did I," Jess told him. "Are you still worried or something? Is there some kind of warning coming?"

"No," he shook his head. "I'm just making sure the two of you are good."

"We're good," he said with a small smile. "Don't worry too much about it. We're good."

"Okay," Luke agreed. "All right."

Luke headed back to work as Jess once again tried to read his book again. Just a few more hours and he could go. He was this close to counting the time.

"Hey, what about your wife?" One of the men at Taylor's table asked another one.

"How about a sock in the nose?" The other one countered.

Jess shook his head. He couldn't wait to go.

…..

"Stupid C-SPAN," Paris muttered to herself as she held the phone to her ear.

Rory had just come out of her room and caught her friend's last sentence. "What?"

"Stupid C-SPAN has me on hold," she replied. "It's been forever and I've got to get going."

"Well, you're not the only one who calls C-SPAN, Paris," Rory teased her.

"Right," she said sarcastically. "There are a lot of us. Like the guy who asked the question about Iran's long-range missile production and nuclear capacity, then shouted 'Ba Ba Booie!' Him they put on. Me they've got twiddling my thumbs."

"You're not twiddling your thumbs," she said. "You're telling me about 'Ba Ba Booie!'"

There was a knock on the door and Rory took a look at Paris, realizing she'd have to get it. When she opened the door, it wasn't anyone she expected. "Dad."

"Hey, kiddo," he said to her with a small smile.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I was just in the neighborhood," he replied. "Wanted to see you. How've you been?"

"I'm fine," she was still surprised. "I have class."

"Right," he nodded. "I should have thought of that."

"How's Gigi?" She asked. Rory didn't see her sister enough.

"She's good," he smiled bigger at the mention of his two year old. "Getting spoiled by her grandma as we speak."

"Oh, good," she smiled back. "It's good she's getting spoiled by her grandparents."

There was a flinch to Christopher but he quickly recovered. "I should have put together you have classes. I should have called first."

"No, it's okay," she waved it off. "I have a few minutes."

He nodded and looked around the dorm. "So this is your place huh?"

Rory looked around too and nodded. "Yep. And you remember Paris?"

"Hi, Paris," Christopher said to her.

Paris turned from her seat. "Yeah, hi. Come on, C-SPAN."

"She's calling C-SPAN," Rory explained.

"Of course she is," he said.

"So you were in the neighborhood?" Rory asked.

"Yeah and I thought maybe we could have lunch," he said.

Rory frowned, thinking of her and Jess' plans today. "I can't today."

"Oh," he seemed sad. "Maybe another time?"

"Yeah, definitely," she agreed. "Another time."

"All right," he said.

"Dad, I have to go," she said. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"I thought you had a few minutes," he said.

"I did," she replied. "I didn't realize the time."

"Well, okay," he said. "We'll talk later."

"Bye, Paris," Rory said with a turn to her roommate. "Bye, Dad."

She was out the door already by the time he said. "Bye, kiddo."

Rory turned a corner and leaned against the wall. She took a deep breath as she wondered why her dad was here. She hoped he hadn't come because he heard about her mom and Luke. She shook her head. He wouldn't do that. Right?

With another breath, she moved away from the wall and headed to her class.

…..

"Is something wrong?"

Rory looked up from her food to her boyfriend. "No. Nothing's wrong."

"You've been staring at your burger for the far too long," Jess commented.

"Oh," she said, picking it up and taking a big bite.

"As sexy as that just was, that wasn't what I was getting at," he laughed once.

Rory swallowed. "Nothing's wrong, I swear. "

He didn't believe her. "You'd tell me if…"

"What?" She wondered.

"If Logan was bothering you or something like that, right?" He whispered.

"Yes," she said too sharply, her annoyance at her earlier visitor coming out at Jess. "I'm sorry."

"Rory, what's wrong?" Jess tried again. "You can tell me whatever it is."

She sighed. "It's not Logan."

"Okay," he believed her this time. "But it is someone?"

With a nod, Rory answered, "My dad came today."

"Oh," he was surprised. He didn't expect it to be her dad. "And what happened?"

"Nothing much," she shrugged and took a smaller bite of her burger. He smiled at how getting her to talk got her to eat. "I think that's the problem."

"Because he isn't around?" He asked.

"Because ever since Gigi was born, he's been more or less absent in my life," Rory confessed. "And it's weird. It's been over a year. Why come now?"

"Maybe he knows he messed up," Jess told her. "Maybe he wants to make it right."

"Maybe," she repeated his word. "I don't know."

"Are you mad he came?" He asked her.

"No," she said. "I don't know."

"You should talk to him," Jess shrugged as he ate the last of his own burger. "See what he wants, if something's going on."

Rory is silent after that, considering his words. He watched her curiously as he tried to understand her thought process. Mostly, though, he just hoped he helped.

…..

After Jess left, Rory pulled out her phone and dialed her dad's number. She waited as it rang and until he finally picked up. She apologized for this morning and explained, maybe she was free for dinner tonight because her boyfriend had classes. He didn't comment on the boyfriend but instead just sounded pleased she agreed.

Christopher knocked on Rory's door lightly. She knew exactly who it would be and with Paris nowhere in sight - probably at Doyle's she guessed - she got off of the couch to answer it.

"Hi, Dad," she greeted with a smile.

"Hey, kiddo," Christopher said warmly. "I'm glad you called."

"I had some advice," she explained.

He nodded. "Your mom?"

She shook her head once. "No, not mom."

"Oh," he said, realizing maybe she didn't want to share who and that made him sad. "Look, gone is the desperate guy from this morning. I didn't think it through and I feel kind of dumb coming down here like this."

"It's okay," she told him.

"Let me explain," he said. "I've been in Hartford a lot lately. My dad's been sick and Gigi is with my mom. And our relationship? I hate it. This stupid wall. We were never that way, even in the worst of times."

"Dad, there's not a wall," she tried to say, anything to make him not think like that.

"I don't want me and you to be like my dad and me," he admitted. "I don't want you visiting me when I'm old because you have to. I want you to want to."

"Dad, are you okay?" She worried.

Christopher tried to laugh. It came out shakier than he expected. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm - I'm okay."

"I wouldn't visit you only out of objection," Rory told him.

A ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "That's good to know."

"Do you wanna go?" She asked. "I know a good place for dinner. It's not far."

"All right, yeah," the smile flitted to life. "Let's go."

….

When dinner was over, Christopher walked his daughter back to her dorm. On the walk back, he took a deep breath before he shared the news. "My dad isn't doing good."

Rory looked up at him. "How bad is it?"

"I think it's pretty bad," he shoved his hands in and out of his pocket. "These past few days specifically."

"Dad…" she looked down at her feet in sadness. She knew her dad didn't get along well with his dad but she still couldn't imagine how he felt.

"It's okay," he pulled her closer in a side hug before releasing her.

She nodded but was caught by surprise when she saw a shadow by the door as they reached it. Her heart sped up as she realized who it was.

"Jess!" She called to which he turned. "What are you doing here?"

"Class ended," he answered. "Thought I'd come see you before I head back."

Rory looked between her boyfriend and her father. It was then Jess really noticed someone was with her. "Oh, I'm ,Jess this is Christopher. Christopher, my dad, this is Jess, my boyfriend."

The two men felt awkward as they learned who the other was but nonetheless they shook hands. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Hayden."

Christopher made an impressed face. "It's good to meet you too. I'd say your last name but I don't know it."

Rory laughed once. "I only told Jess it once. He has a good memory."

"For the important things," he replied. "And something involving you is important."

She ducked her head down as she felt a minor blush come. Christopher watched the exchange with careful eyes. "So you said you're taking classes? You're not a student here then right?"

"No," Jess replied. "Not here."

"He's taking night classes for his writing," Rory chimed in. "He's really good."

"You haven't read any of it yet," he countered.

"But it will be good," she beamed. "I know it already."

"Sure," he said sarcastically. Rory shook her head at him, a silent nod to tell him she's right.

"Come on, let's go inside," Rory said. "Dad? Want some coffee?"

"Oh, sure," he answered. "I wasn't sure if you wanted me to."

"Of course I do," she replied as she opened the door. The three of them walked in. Jess immediately sat on the couch and Christopher stood there awkwardly. "I'll make the coffee."

"I'll help," Jess sat right back up.

"Okay," she said.

Jess followed his girlfriend into the small area where the coffeemaker was. Rory got out the filter while he took out the coffee. Christopher watched them, seeing they acted like a team. He hoped to get to know this Jess better if he was the guy his daughter had been dating.

They came back into the room and sat on the couch. Christopher finally decided to sit too and he sat in the lone seat. "Coffee's making."

Christopher nodded. "Good, great."

They say quietly for a moment. Jess asked Rory a question with his eyes - how did it go. She didn't know how to answer so she tried to motion she'd tell him later.

"So," the older man finally broke the silence. "How did you two met?"

Rory laughed. So did Jess. "That's a funny story."

"I like funny stories," Chris told them.

Rory took a deep breath, ready to explain but leave out certain details of their stories. "It started on spring break…"


	39. Gilmores of unquestionable morals

"I hate snow," Lorelai groaned to her daughter as soon as Rory got out of her car.

"You love snow," Rory stated as she walked over to her.

"We had a falling out this winter," Lorelai sighed. "There was even a time it tried to lock me at the inn without any coffee."

"The fiend!" Rory gasped.

"I'm not sure I have it in me to love it right now," she said sadly.

Maybe snow will make it up to you," Rory suggested as they headed to the Gilmore pool house. "You can be distracted by Friday Night dinner for now."

"I think I'd rather take my chances with snow," Lorelai groaned.

Rory gave her a look to which her mother pouted. "Come on, silly."

When they reached the door, Rory knocked lightly until a man opened the door. Lorelai recognized her father's valet. "Hello, Robert."

"Hello, ladies," he greeted. "How are you tonight?"

"We are good," Rory answered before her mom could. "Is Grandpa here?"

"He's right inside," Robert moved aside so they could enter.

"Hi, Grandpa," Rory smiled brightly.

"Hello, Rory!" He returned just as happy. "Lorelai!"

"Hey, dad," Lorelai replied then noticed another person sat in the room. "Mom? What are you doing here?"

"A simple hello would be fine, Lorelai," Emily said.

"Hello," Lorelai said and quickly followed with, "Is that a dog?"

"Yes, it is," Emily nodded. "The dog is also the answer to your previous question. I'm here to sit with it so go about your drinks as usual."

"He's so cute!" Rory went to the dog and pet it.

"When did you get a dog?" Lorelai asked, confused.

"She's not our dog," Emily explained as Richard he handed his daughter a drink.

Lorelai took the drink from her father's hand. "No less confused."

"It's a he," Richard stated.

Emily frowned. "I thought you said it was a girl."

"I got a second peek," he answered. "It was rolling around and it became very obvious."

Lorelai seemed even more confused. "This is getting weirder and weirder."

"Did you name it?" Rory asked.

"Oh, heavens no," Emily told her. "We've been trying to find an owner but first we needed to figure out what kind of dog it is."

"So he's really not your dog?" Lorelai asked.

"It just showed up in our yard yesterday morning," Richard replied. "We have no idea where it came from or who's it is. It has no tags. It's a big mystery this dog."

"Oh now I've monopolized the conversation and I'm not even supposed to be here," Emily groaned. "Just enjoy your drinks, everyone."

"I'm having Robert make one up for you as well," Richard said.

On Emily's face, a ghost of a smile appeared. "Even though I'm not officially here?"

"Absolutely," he smiled back.

Rory and Lorelai looked between the two of them and gave each other a look. "So how long as you going to keep him?"

"As long as it takes to find the owners," Richard said.

"Richard had to miss a half a day of work yesterday," Emily added.

"Yes, but Emily wrote me a note so I should be okay," he smiled.

Lorelai went to sit down on the couch and Rory followed. Richard sat down in his chair as well. It almost seemed too quiet now, the air was filled with whatever was happening between Emily and Richard and both girls could feel it.

Emily sighed into the silence. "Okay, now really, you can just pretend I'm not here."

"Okay," Lorelai said then perked up. "Oh my god, Rory, did I tell you about that horrendous thing that Mom did? She can be such a witch with a 'b'."

"Lorelai," Emily warned.

Lorelai pretended to look surprised to see her mother there. "Oh, geez, Mom. I forgot you were there! My pretending is that good."

"We can't really pretend you're not here, Grandma," Rory pointed out.

"That's true, Emily," Richard agreed. "You have a presence that can't be ignored."

She looked like she was trying to hide a blush. "Oh, well, I can leave."

"Nonsense," Richard said. "The dog likes you here and you can join in on the conversation if you wish."

"Well, all right," Emily almost smiled. "And I am curious to when you girls heard the bad news."

"What bad news?" Lorelai asked.

"Straub died," Emily told them.

"Straub," Lorelai said. "Christopher's father, Straub?"

"Yes," Richard answered.

"When?" Rory asked, remembering what he said at her dorm and a feeling sank in her gut.

"This morning," Emily said. "He'd been sick for a while."

"Oh my god," Lorelai whispered.

"He was the picture of health, too," Emily went on. "It caught Francine completely off guard when he was diagnosed."

'I can't believe he didn't even tell us he was sick," Lorelai shook her head.

"He told me," Rory interrupted.

"What?" Lorelai asked. "When?"

"He came to my dorm the other day," she answered her.

"Maybe he left you a message," Richard suggested to his daughter.

"He was quiet on the phone with me," her mother interjected. "We even only got the headlines."

Lorelai nodded, thoughts racing on her mind. "We should sent him something, right? For the funeral?"

"We could send flowers," Rory suggested.

"Send whatever you send to Francine," Emily said. "Christopher and the baby are staying with her until it's all figured out."

"And we'll send something together, Emily," Richard told her.

"I've already signed your name to flowers," she replied to him and he smiled at her, almost amazed. Right then, the dog stood up and she gasped. "Oh! It moved!"

Richard walked over to his wife. "Let me show you how he likes his blanket arranged. He can be very particular."

Lorelai sank into her seat with an unreadable expression on her face. She risked a glance over to Rory then looked back away.

…..

"What are you doing?"

Luke almost jumped at the sound of his nephew's voice. "You should wear a bell, you know."

"I'll be sure to pick one up," Jess retorted.

"I'm making a surprise for Lorelai," he said.

"A surprise on paper?" Jess frowned at the large paper spread in front of his uncle.

"It's a blueprint," Luke explained.

"For?" Jess asked.

"A surprise for Lorelai," he said again.

"I'm not getting anything out of you, am I?" Jess smirked.

"No," Luke shook his head with a slight smile.

"That's fine," Jess grabbed his jacket off the hook by the door. "I'm gonna go out for a while."

"To where?" Luke looked up from his work.

"Out," he shrugged.

"It's Friday night," his uncle stated.

"Yes?" He waited.

"Rory's at dinner Friday night," he added.

"Is that why she's not here?" He pretended to act surprised.

Luke ignored his sarcasm. "Where would you go without Rory around?"

"Believe it or not, Uncle Luke," he answered. "I talk to other people besides Rory."

"Oh yeah?" He challenged. "Who?"

"Lane," he replied.

"Someone who's not forced to work with you," he said.

Jess crossed his arms, smirking. "I will if you will."

"Get out," Luke waved him off, obviously not wanting to answer the question is.

Jess smirked again as he shook his head. "With charm like that, it's no wonder Lorelai sticks around."

Luke glared at him until he finally backed out and left. Once he was outside, Jess glanced around. It actually was rare for him to find someone to talk to in this town without Rory. Instinctively, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette.

For a moment, he considered calling his friends in New York. They hadn't been too happy about his sudden departure but he also wasn't sure how to explain it to them. The only part he was sure about was that they wouldn't understand.

It had been months since he saw Caleb or Todd. Jess had never been one for nostalgia but he actually kind of missed them. They had been friends for years and his move was seen as a betrayal. As if Jess had chosen Stars Hollow and the small town life over them.

It wasn't that, he told himself. New York wasn't for him anymore. It wasn't his place. His mother and TJ had been traveling with the faire and even the obligation to visit was gone. He'd be lying if he didn't admit Rory was a part of it. He couldn't imagine being away from her again, especially after these past couple of months.

A smile ghosted on his face as his thoughts went to his girlfriend. The unlit cigarette was long forgotten the second she came to mind. Jess was happy. It wasn't a feeling he ever expected to feel before. Love wasn't even an idea that occured to him. The second he saw Rory, he knew his mind was changed.

"My girlfriend's the whore!" Kirk screamed through the square, interrupted his thoughts. "My girlfriend's the whore!"

He shook his head but shouted back, "I wouldn't be shouting that, Kirk!"

He obviously heard the response. Kirk stopped running and moved himself in Jess' direction. "It's for the re-enactment. Taylor chose Lulu to be the lady."

"I thought he didn't like the word whore for her," he teased, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Well -" Kirk seemed confused now. "But -"

"Just go back to calling her the whore, Kirk," Jess told him with a laugh.

He nodded, the confused expression still etched on his face. Kirk began his jog again and once he was out of Jess' range, he shouted again.

Jess laughed to himself. "At least we're never starved for entertainment here."

….

"That was weird," Lorelai said as they left the Gilmore mansion.

"Very weird," Rory agreed.

The two of them stood beside Lorelai's Jeep, processing through what just happened. "Since when are they so friendly? Dare I say flirty even."

"I don't think I've ever seen them like that," Rory answered.

"And the dog?" She questioned. "My parents would never pick up a dog that they find in the yard. They'd call someone, not take it in."

"It needs to be added to the list of weird," Rory nodded.

"And Christopher?" Lorelai said. "He didn't tell me about his dad?"

"I think he was trying to process it," was the answer she got.

Lorelai eyed her suspiciously. "But he came to your dorm to tell you."

"He didn't come to tell me," she turned to face her mother. "He came because he wanted us have a better relationship than he had with his dad and it just came out."

"What did you do?" She asked as they entered the house and shut the door behind them.

"We went to dinner," Rory shuffled her feet nervously.

"And?" She waited. "How was it?"

"Good," she nodded. "A little awkward. It didn't help that Jess was there."

"Jess was there too?" Lorelai questioned. "I feel like I'm missing something. Are you saying Jess made it awkward?"

"No," Rory sighed. "Me and dad were awkward. It just wasn't the time I expected him to meet my boyfriend, you know?"

"Do you wish he wasn't there?" She asked, not alluding to which he she meant.

"I wish that when Jess was at my door, I could have just had a night with my boyfriend," she replied. "Is that selfish?"

"No, sweets," Lorelai pushed her daughter's hair out of her face. "I don't think it's selfish."

She frowned. "I felt selfish. Dad was trying and his dad was sick…"

"Rory," Lorelai said calmly. "Honey, you're going to drive yourself crazy if you think about it too much."

"Right," she agreed. "You're right."

"Come on," she wrapped an arm around her. "Let's go home."

Rory agreed again and both of them got into their cars. She drove behind her mother the whole way back to Stars Hollow. The traffic was surprisingly good for a Friday night. When they finally got back to the house, Lorelai waited outside her car for her daughter to catch up.

"So what do you wanna do?" Lorelai asked her.

"Let's watch Monty Python," Rory beamed, her mood before seemed forgotten.

"We're gonna need snacks," her mother warned as they walked to the house.

"I could get them," Rory innocently offered.

"Hmm," she nodded. "And am I right in guessing you'll be sneaking off to see a certain boy while you're out?"

"I will admit Jess as a resident of Stars Hollow has its perks," she said just as coyly.

"Perks," she raised her eyebrow mischievously. "Is that what the kids are calling it these days?"

"Mom, I had to experience telling Dad me and Jess' story this week," Rory said. "I'm not sure I can handle the sex jokes now."

"Well, all right," Lorelai frowned. "But! I have a question then."

Rory waited. "Yes?"

Lorelai took a breath before she began. "How did your dad take the story of sleeping with Jess just a few days after you met him? Because, me, I panicked a little but people always say dads freaks out over their daughters more so -"

"Dad got the abridged version," Rory interrupted.

"And the abridged version is?" She asked.

"Me and Paris were bored and went to spring break in Florida," she said. "I met Jess, we clicked but we went our separate ways. Later I found out he was Luke's nephew and we became friends but had feelings for each other and didn't do anything about them but -"

Lorelai coughed in the middle of her last sentence. Rory gave her a look. "Sorry. Tickle. Continue."

So she did. "But he lived in New York. So when he came here and Luke gave him a job, we gave us a shot."

"So really abridged," Lorelai commented. "No sex, no Shane, no Logan. Not even Europe."

She shrugged. "He doesn't need every detail. He knows we care about each other and that's good with me."

"It's good with me, too," she smiled softly at her daughter.

Rory smiled back. "Oh! I should go get the snacks."

"Right, yes," Lorelai agreed. "Go. Get us red vines and everything Luke will say can rot our teeth and go see the boy toy. Tell him hi."

"Will do," Rory went back outside and back to her car. Lorelai leaned down onto the couch, with a small smile still on her lips.

…..

"Hey," Rory said as she approached Jess on the bridge. "What are you doing here?"

He looked up at her, a smirk played on his lips. "I tossed some pennies into the lake and made a wish."

"Oh yeah?" She tried not to smile. "What'd you wish for?"

"That this gorgeous brunette with this insane blue eyes would come find me," he answered.

"Hmm," she nodded. "Did it work?"

"Definitely," he said as serious as he could. "Hi."

"Hi," she beamed as she walked closer and leaned down to kiss him on the lips. "Really, though. I thought you were working tonight."

"Luke gave me off because I started earlier today," he shrugged. "Then I remembered you had dinner at your grandparents tonight so it seemed to go wrong."

She sat down beside him and linked her arm with his. "I have some news."

Jess turned his head towards her with a curious look. "What is it?"

She took a deep breath. "My dad's dad died."

"Oh," he said. "Is that - is that why your dad came to visit?"

"Part of it," she said. "He was still here then but yeah."

"Are you okay?" He asked her.

"I'm not sure," she sighed. "I barely knew the man and he and my dad...They didn't exactly get along and even that is an understatement."

Jess was almost afraid to ask what he wanted to ask. "Was it because of you?"

She shook her head. "No, they were pretty distant before he found out his son would be a teenage father."

"That kind of makes it sadder," he admitted to her. "That no matter what, even if he'd been older and married when his first kid was born, they'd still have a shit relationship."

"It is sad," she agreed. "But I learned something in it. My grandparents - I love them. I really love them. And my mom had different experiences with them than I have."

"But?" He added.

Rory let out a breath. "But...despite how they handled certain things or even my mom, when they found out she was pregnant, most parents might kick their kid out. They let her stay and they were going to help raise me. That's...That's pretty amazing when you consider everything."

"And you have a new appreciation for them," he stated, not asked.

Rory nodded. "Yeah, I do. My dad's parents blamed my mom and I never, ever would want to be like that."

"Me, either," he whispered.

Rory snuggled herself closer to him. "I think I'm gonna go see my dad tomorrow after the reenactment."

"I'm sure he'd like that a lot," Jess smiled at her.

"Yeah?" She quietly asked, a small smile played on her lips.

He smiled back at her and kissed the side of her forehead. "Yeah."

…..

The movie night was cut short when Rory fell asleep on the couch. Lorelai called Jess over and as she waited for him to arrive, she thought a lot. A clear decision came to mind about something she felt like she needed to do but she needed to do one thing before it.

A knock rapped softly at the door and Lorelai jumped off the couch. When she opened the door, it was slow and she spoke in a whisper. "You have great timing, you know that?"

"It helps to live a walking distance away," Jess replied with a small smirk. "Where is she?"

"In there," she pointed to the living room.

Jess tried to search over her shoulders to see inside. "She was tired?"

Lorelai nodded. "She doesn't usually fall asleep this early."

"Why'd you call me?" Jess found himself asking. "I mean, you're here and she's just sleeping. Is something wrong I don't know about or -?"

"Her grandfather died, the one she isn't close to," she told him.

He nodded. "She told me about that. I'm sorry."

Lorelai nodded too, not sure if she should accept the apology. "I didn't want her to be alone tonight."

"Are you going somewhere?" he asked.

"I'm gonna go see her dad," she stated. "They weren't close either but I can't imagine it still. And I've known him a long time so I thought maybe I shouldn't let him go through this alone."

"It's a good idea," he said. "Rory is gonna go see him tomorrow."

"Good," she smiled. "That's good. She should."

"When are you going?" Jess asked her.

"Soon," she replied. "I just have one stop before."

He knew without asking. "Luke."

Lorelai nodded. "We're doing really good. I don't want to keep secrets."

Jess' mind briefly flashed to a piece of paper written on it by his father and a conversation out in the road. "Yeah, I wouldn't want that, either."

Lorelai smiled at him. "Goodnight, Jess. Take care of Rory for me."

"I will," he agreed without hesitation.

She waved goodbye and headed out the door as Jess walked inside. Rory was peacefully fast asleep on the couch. She was curled underneath a blanket and he smiled down at her. God, he loved her.

Jess leaned down to her and kneeled on the ground. He brushed a stray piece of hair away from her face and watched her eyelids flutter. She didn't wake up so he thought she must be dreaming.

Quietly, he stood again but this time, he put his arms underneath her body. Gently as he could, Jess lifted Rory from the couch and into his arms. She stirred but didn't wake as he carried her to her bedroom.

Even more gently, Jess placed her down on her bed. He removed her shoes that she still wore and undid her covers. He put Rory beneath them and when she finally under, he took off his own shoes and jacket and climbed on top.

For a moment he just watched her. He wasn't much for sentimental but he felt a sense of pride in looking at her. Feeling proud wasn't something one usually thought when thinking how someone was with them. Maybe that was just him but he did. He was proud that Rory was his girlfriend.

Rory moved in her sleep, coming closer towards Jess. It was like instinct. He wasn't even sure she knew he was there. Again, he kissed her forehead with a smile and he leaned his head against the pillow.

His mind traced back to the conversation with Lorelai. He didn't want to keep any secrets from Rory, even secrets he hadn't fully processed on his own yet. It was in that moment that he decided he was going to tell Rory as soon as possible about his father's offer.

 **A/N: sorry to cut off there! But I hope it'll do for now and I love my upcoming plans but sadly have to say I think this is ending soon. I'm not sure exactly how much is left or how long it'll go. If you know me, you know I can drag out stuff lol But I wanted to give a heads up about it and I have other things I wanna write so maybe I will get to them too right? :)**


	40. Children and fathers

It was Rory who woke up first the next morning. She didn't remember falling asleep or going to her bedroom. There was a cloud of haze in her thoughts and even more when she realized she wasn't alone in the bed.

A search over the walls showed her Yale memorabilia and a turn to to her left formed a smile on her face. Jess laid face down on the pillow beside her, snoring lightly. Rory knew she was out of it when she didn't even remember him coming over.

Quietly, she climbed out of the bed and the stiffness in her legs from sleeping in her jeans locked in. A blush threatened to come as she thought about how Jess could have changed her clothes. She grabbed stuff for a shower and with one last look at her sleeping boyfriend, she left the room.

The shower was brief, Rory didn't like to stay in there too long. There was also her thoughts were fixed on the man in her room. She wanted to ask him when he got there and where her mom was. She didn't even know what time he had work today so she needed to check on that too.

On her way back to the kitchen, she spotted something she hadn't seen in her first glance. There was a note resting on the counter beside the toaster. Rory walked over to it, throwing her stuff in her hamper first and saw the unmistakable handwriting of Lorelai Gilmore.

You were asleep when I got back home last night and you were asleep when I woke up. Rest. I went to Luke's but if read this past 9, I'm at work. See you, kid.

Rory smiled to herself but also wondered where her mom had went even more. Why had she been so tired in the first place? With a shake of her head, she went back to her bedroom and saw Jess was still fast asleep.

For a moment, she watched him. She watched his steady breathing and listened to his soft snores. Jess would never admit to snoring but she knew he did and it was almost a comfort. As long as she heard that sound, he was okay.

After a moment, Rory climbed back into the bed, wet hair and all. She wrapped her arms around Jess as best as she could and kissed his shoulder.

He must have felt her because the snoring stopped and he made a sound. Jess had tried to move his head to her and when he did, he smiled. "Good morning."

"Good morning," she smiled back. "I didn't expect you."

"Ouch," he teased as she let go of him and he turned on his side to face her. "Not exactly what you want to hear in the morning."

"No," she laughed. "What I mean was, it was a nice surprise."

He nodded once. "You sleep okay?"

"I slept good," she nodded now. "I can't believe I was so tired. I don't know what happened."

"Your mom called me," he said. "Told me you fell asleep during movie night. She wanted me to stay with you."

"Where did she go?" Rory asked, the note on the counter in her mind.

"To see your dad," he replied.

"Because of my grandfather," she mused.

"Yeah," Jess agreed. "She wanted to make sure you didn't wake up alone, wondering where she went."

"She got the alone part covered," she joked.

Jess put his arm towards her, his hand rested on her hip. "You okay?"

She nodded once, too quickly then stopped. "I don't know. I'm just worried over nothing."

"What is it?" He became curious.

"My mom is happy with Luke," she stated, paused then spoke again. "My mom is happy with Luke and I'm afraid my dad will mess it up."

She sat up on the bed, Jess followed her actions. "Why do you think he'll mess it up?"

"Because he always does," she sighed. "Everytime he comes back, something gets more messed up between them and I really don't want that thing to be Luke."

"It won't be," Jess brushed her hair away from her face so he could see her better. She still didn't turn to look at him.

"How can you be sure?" Rory asked.

Jess laughed once. "Because have you seen them? Besides, right before she left last night, she told me she was going to go see Luke first."

"She told him," she said with a small smile.

"The chance of him getting in between your mom and Luke are the same as Logan getting in between you and me," he told her with a slight humor.

Rory didn't find it so funny as she finally looked at him with a serious face. "He couldn't."

"Exactly," he smiled at her. "Come on. I'm gonna make you breakfast."

"You are?" She asked with a smile, seriousness forgotten.

"Come on," Jess climbed off the bed, yesterday's clothes on, and reached out his hands to pull Rory off the bed with him. "Up."

"Now?" She laughed as she let him pull her to the floor.

"Yes, now," he said. "Are you refusing someone to make you breakfast?"

"Never," she grinned. "But...we are alone so why not take advantage of that?"

It only took Jess a second to respond. "Maybe we can eat after."

Rory laughed at that response.

….

After breakfast, together they had decided to go see the reenactment. Rory walked with her arm in-between Jess' and every few seconds, she'd glance away from the path before her to look at him.

He noticed this and almost laughed. "What?"

"I like your face," she said seriously.

Now he did laugh. "What?"

Rory shook her head, a blush on her face. "I'm silly, right?"

"Not silly," he smiled at her now.

She ducked her head to hide her face. When she looked up, she saw the crowd outside for the reenactment. "Come on! We're gonna miss it!"

Rory unlatched her arm from his and instead tugged on Jess' hand. He laughed at her excitement as they ran forward. He spotted Lorelai as they got closer and he knew Rory had too because she was running in her direction.

"Hey!" Lorelai said in surprise when they reached her. "What are you doing here?"

"Me?" She laughed. "What about you? Why aren't you at work?"

Lorelai shrugged mysteriously. "I told Michel there was something I just had to see and I'd be there when it's done."

"Sneaky," Rory beamed.

"I could never miss the reenactment," she replied.

"What exactly is the reenactment?" Jess asked the two of them.

"Kirk briefed you right?" Lorelai asked him.

"Briefly," he said which earned a tight lipped smile from his girlfriend.

"Why are your eyes so red?" Rory asked her mother, noticing it for the first time.

"Because I have may have brought over some adult milk and cookies to cheer your dad up," she answered. "But I think I should have let his other buddies drink with him because I desperately needed pancakes."

"Pancakes?" Jess was confused.

"Her hangover food," Rory explained then turned back to her mom. "And it's better you went because I think you might be his oldest buddy."

"Oldest," Lorelai made a face. "I don't like that word."

"We could use a different word," Rory suggested.

"Luke was very good at cooperating this morning though," Lorelai added. "I told him I felt like throwing up and the only thing that would help me was pancakes. He was very quick in aiding anything that did not involve a clean up."

Jess laughed. "That sounds like Uncle Luke."

"Oh!" Rory exclaimed. "The reenactment! It's starting!"

"Voice," Lorelai whispered.

"The reenactment, it's starting," Rory whispered which earned a grateful nod from her mother.

The Reverend had come out, children on his tail. They did an introduction to the event which the children had memorized.

"Children should shoot us for what we make them do," Lorelai commented.

It continued on, the children reciting their lines. When the reenactors ran off during a point in the story, Rory frowned. "What about horses? Wouldn't they have horses?"

"Or at least coconuts to bang together for a nice effect," Lorelai replied.

The narrator explained how the only road for the General to take was a snowy road. Another narrator explained how a scout had arrived to warn them of the general's arrival.

Lorelai winced at the dialogue. "Seriously, this is worse dialogue then From Justin to Kelly."

When the narrator explained how a brave woman had put herself in harm's way to distract the general, Rory noticed the outfit immediately. "Is that your dress?"

"Yeah," Lorelai nodded, a look of confusion on her face. "I made it exactly to Lulu's specifications. Did she all of a sudden get bonier?"

"And taller?" Rory questioned.

"You gotta be shitting me," Jess whispered under his breath, trying to not laugh.

Taylor, dressed for his role and on top of his horse said, "Good day, fair lady. You intrigue me. What have you to say?"

The fair lady shook her head and it turned out to not be Lulu or a lady at all. Lorelai gasped in shock as Jess' full on shut his mouth to not laugh. Rory was at an in between. "Oh my god."

"Kirk!" Taylor hissed.

"No wonder his breasts weren't holding it up," Lorelai commented.

"What are you doing?" Taylor asked. "Where's Lulu?"

"She's sick," he explained. "I tried to find you but you weren't around and I didn't know what to do. The press is here and I didn't want to let the town down."

"That is the ugliest lady I've ever seen," the three of them heard someone comment.

"This is far and away the worst thing you have ever done," Taylor remarked. "I am livid with you!"

"We're not supposed to be arguing, Taylor," Kirk replied. "We're supposed to be making love."

"Dear God," Taylor muttered as he got off his horse and played along with the part.

"I am so glad I am not at work for this," Lorelai beamed.

….

The day had passed much too slowly for either Rory and Jess. As promised, Rory drove down to her dad's house while Jess stayed in Stars Hollow to help Luke out. Turned out Luke was gone most of the morning and he had built Lorelai an ice rink in front of her house.

Jess wasn't going to be the one to intrude on a romantic grand gesture.

He had just finished wiping down his last table for the night when the above the door chimed. At first he didn't look up, suspecting it was just the usual customer.

When he heard her voice, he knew he was right but also wrong at the same time. "Hey."

Jess' head came up, a smirk played on his lips. "Hey."

Rory stood awkwardly in the middle of the diner. A smile threatened to appear on her own face as she looked at her boyfriend. "Slow day?*

"A little," he replied. "Seems to be picking up now."

Rory came to sit at a stool at the counter and watched as he finished. For some reason, she just really loved seeing him work. Maybe it was attractive to see. If that was the case, she knew she wouldn't be able to handle watching him write.

Jess walked back over to her and kissed her in greeting. "How's your dad doing?"

"He's okay," she nodded. "I think he's doing the best he can right now."

"Understandable," Jess remarked.

"He has a lot of regrets though," she sighed. "Wishes he and his dad were closer or at least got along better."

"Also understandable," he sat down beside her.

Rory shook her head slightly and looked down at her feet then back up. "I can't even imagine. First, having that strained relationship with a parent. Even at the worst of times, me and my dad weren't that."

"Right," Jess agreed, his thoughts going to his own strained relationship with his mother and to the reappearance of his absent father. He wasn't sure what to say but he knew she needed to talk so he let her go on.

"And me and my mom -" she chuckled, almost humorlessly. "We're nothing at all like that. We're best friends. To not be best friends with her, it's inconceivable. I can't picture it."

"You shouldn't have to," he gave her a small smile which she returned. "Rory, it's good you can't picture it."

"I know," she said. "I just feel so bad for my dad, you know? His family was polite when necessary and very proper. There wasn't a lot of affection from them."

"How many times did you meet them?" Jess found himself asking.

"Only a few times," she answered. "The first time was a mess. It was me, mom, dad, them and my grandparents. It was like lighting a match."

"I could imagine how that went," he said.

Rory looked sad as she remembered it. "You wanna know what my grandma said to me that night?"

Jess reached forward and moved a stray piece of hair away from his girlfriend's face. "What did she say?"

Rory's lips twitched into a sad smile. "That there was a lot of disappointments spoken about in the family and how me and my existence have never been a part of that list."

Jess smiled at that too. "I can agree with that."

"Hey, Jess?"

*Yeah?"

"Do you think -" she cut herself off then tried again. "Can I stay here tonight? I don't think I wanna sleep alone."

"Of course," he answered without hesitation. "You don't even need to ask, you know."

"I know," she told him. "But I like to."

Jess put his hand on her leg and Rory decided that wasn't close enough. She climbed off her stool and wrapped her arms around him. He was engulfed into a tight hug before he could even blink.

In response, he wrapped his arms around her, too. She nestled herself into his arms and she felt safe. Jess had felt safe, too and with all this parents and father talk, he felt the need to finally confess what happened.

"Rory?" He asked.

She stayed nestled in his neck. "Hmm?"

"I have to tell you about something," he said almost too slow.

That was when Rory pulled out of the hug. The look on her face was worried, unsure. She searched his face for aid and judging by her reaction, didn't find much. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he emphasized. "Not exactly."

She didn't seem convinced. "What is it then?"

"Do you remember that night I walked out of the diner because I saw my dad?" He asked her.

"Yeah," Rory nodded. "Why?"

"He gave me something that night," Jess reached into his pocket and pulled out something. There was a small piece of paper stuffed into a book. He unfolded it and handed it to her.

Rory took the paper hesitantly as she unfolded it. She read over the words slowly and he waited for her reaction. "This is an address."

"In California, yeah," he nodded.

"Why did he give you a California address?" She looked at him curiously.

"Because that's where he lives," Jess said with a deep breath. "And he wants me to come see him."

"Oh," she said silently.

"And I was thinking about taking him up on his offer," he added.

Now it was Jess' turn to search Rory's face. It looked sad and mysterious. The only emotion she couldn't hide was her sadness at the idea he'd leave. "When?"

"I don't know," he shook his head. "I hadn't really thought of anything past maybe going."

"But you are going to go?" She asked.

Jess nodded. "Yeah. I think I am."

Rory nodded to herself too and Jess watched her face. She just looked sad and it almost broke him. She stood up abruptly. "I should go."

"What?" He asked. "Why?"

"Because it's late," she answered. "I spent the whole day with my dad and the diner's closed. I'm tired. I should go."

She started to walk out the door when Jess jumped out of his seat and grabbed her arm. "Rory, wait."

"What?" She turned. "You're leaving so there's not really much to say, is there?"

"Who said I was leaving?" He questioned.

"You!" She waved her free hand towards him. "Just now!"

"I didn't say I was leaving," he pointed out. "I said I was maybe going to go and that I didn't know when."

"Potato, patato," she murmured.

"Rory," he said when she tried to walk out again. "I'm not leaving. What makes you think I could?"

She sighed but didn't turn back this time. "Because what if I'm not enough to keep you here?"

"Hey," Jess turned her around now, forcing her to face him. "What makes you think I'd want to be anywhere without you?"

Rory let out a sniff, trying to not look at his face. "I've always thought that if this happened, I could hold you back. That you would want more and then when you moved here and we started dating, I wondered if you would be okay with a small town life."

"I'm okay with anything that has you in it," he told her honestly. "Rory, jeez. Why didn't you tell me you thought this?"

"I was afraid," she admitted. "If I told you that I worried you'd leave, you might actually."

If it had been any other thing, he would have laughed or commented how he found her adorable. But it wasn't so he didn't. "If I was going to just leave you, especially to meet my dad, would I have just told you about the offer?"

"I don't know," she frowned. "Maybe. Just because I know doesn't mean you can't leave."

"Ror," he shook his head, hands on both of her arms to steady her. "Don't you get it? I already can't leave."

What he was saying clicked in her head and a smile wanted to break free. "Really?"

"Really," he told her.

Rory instantly hugged him. Her emotions felt all over the place at the moment, especially with losing a family member even if they weren't close. She gripped Jess to her tightly, never wanting to let go.

His arms came around her just as tight. He wasn't sure if he had reassured her enough but he knew he would try. It wasn't a choice to leave or stay anymore. He knew he would stay. Wherever she went, he would want to be.

When they let go of the hug, Jess smiled her briefly. "You almost ran out of here so quick that I didn't get to ask you something."

"What's that?" Rory wondered.

"When I go to California…" Jess took a deep breath and he could see her almost freeze despite words that had just been said. "Would you want to come with me?"

"What?" She laughed out of happiness instead of humor. "Really?"

"I was planning on asking you right after I told you about the address but then everything else happened," he replied. "Well, would you?"

"Are you kidding?" She beamed. "I'd love to come."

Within seconds, she crashed her lips to his. A million thoughts ran through both of their heads, none stopping to make one center focus. The only thing they wanted to think about was each other and what was happening.

Before Rory could process what she was doing, her legs were around Jess' waist. He carried her across the room back to a chair. He wasn't sure he could get upstairs while carrying her but he didn't want to let go either. Rory felt him sit down, her lips never disconnecting from his.

Hands roamed the other's neck and back. Jess' were palm spread on her back, low enough that he could feel the sliver of skin where her shirt rode up. She could feel his rough hands on her and if she wasn't so distracted, she'd have blushed at the thoughts of his hands on other places.

Her hands were the ones on his neck. She could have sworn she felt his pulse underneath her fingers, his heart beating so wildly. She did that, she told herself. It was her.

Jess' hand finally started working again and in a moment it clicked. They were downstairs in the diner. As much as a fantasy as it would be, the windows were far too open for anything to happen. His hands fell from holding her and he broke the kiss.

Rory looked confused and worried as he pulled away. Jess shook his head and gave her a quick kiss. He motioned with his hands for her to stand up so she did and without a word, he took her hand and walked with her to the apartment.

Once they were upstairs, Jess went right to where they left off. His mouth was on within seconds, his hands were on her face and her back. She moaned instantly, not being able to contain it any longer. He smirked to himself as he thought that the sound was because of him.

It was Rory who broke the kiss this time. "Where's Luke?"

"I don't know," he said, almost as out of breath as she was. "He had me close up tonight."

Rory remembered seeing an ice rink outside her house when she came to park her car. He must be with her mom. "Do you think he's coming back?"

"I don't think so," he answered. "Why? Are you planning on seducing me?"

"Are you seducable?" She asked him, a grin on her face.

"Please don't tell me you just quoted a Nicholas Sparks movie to me," he laughed.

"I won't then," she teased. "As long as you tell me when you saw a Nicholas Sparks movie."

"Later," he promised and she could already feel her knees go weak.

It was then that he kissed her again. This time was less urgent but just as passionate. These kisses were softer, smaller. Rory smiled against his lips and spoke when he leaned his forehead to hers. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he told her with his own smile. He had to add something else, to make sure she knew. "And I'm not leaving. I don't plan on leaving and if I do go anywhere, I'm not going without you."

Her smile grew the second his words were out of his mouth. "I don't know what to say to that because I already told you I loved you."

"It doesn't hurt to hear it again," he teased.

"I love you, Jess," she said with all seriousness. His face was her hands and he was staring directly at her eyes. It felt perfect.

Jess' response was to kiss her. The kisses were sweet but she knew where it would lead despite how innocent they seemed. Jess lifted her up into his arms, his arms underneath her legs, her arms around his neck. Neither broke the kiss as he carried her to the bed and put her down, getting ready for the rest of the night.

 **A/N: I have mixed feelings on this chapter. I don't know if I like how I did it. I hope you like it better :)**


	41. The wedding

**A/N: I'm having trouble writing this one because I don't want to put whole scenes from the hundredth episode in the chapter but I also don't want to change them. Assume the bachelorette party at Rory and Lorelai's happens as on the show and it should work :)**

Jess shut the door to the diner behind him as he walked in. The night was cold in the February air and he was anxious to get upstairs. His class had run late tonight but he'd also made some friends in the class so it wasn't too bad.

He walked right up to the counter and to his uncle once he was completely inside. "I can't believe I'm asking for this but can I have a coffee?"

Luke smirked at him. "Wow. Class must have been stressful, huh?"

Jess shook his head. "No. Not stressful. Just longer than expected. Plus it's freezing out there."

"You'll feel better once you're upstairs," Luke told him as he got him the coffee. Black with no sugar. Rory had teased him mercilessly about his preference.

"No kidding," Jess drank some. "I feel ready to go to sleep."

"I have the feeling you won't be able to get," his uncle said.

Jess gave him a look. "Why? Something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong," he shook his head.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"There may be someone waiting for you upstairs, that's all," he shrugged as if he was uninterested.

"Huh," Jess nodded, already hoping it was Rory. He wasn't sure what he would do if it was Liz.

"If I was you, I'd head up there," Luke murmured.

"I think I'll go up right now," he drank the contents of his cup quickly, all while ignoring the scorching on his throat. Maybe Rory was right about needing milk in the coffee.

He was out of his seat almost too quick

Kirk, beside him, frowned. "Why is his coffee free? I can't even get you to bring the price down five cents."

"Employee discount, Kirk," Jess said as he passed him.

"Rats," he said then turned to Luke. "Luke, by any chance, are you hiring?"

"No, Kirk," Luke said as Jess mounted the stairs and any conversation from the diner faded away.

He took a breath before he opened the door. It was a Friday night. If it was Rory behind that door, she must have something important to tell him. Her weekly family dinner was Friday so for her to be there before he got home from a class would be almost strange.

Slowly he opened the door and the first thing he saw was definitely his girlfriend. She jumped off the bed with a beaming smile and right into his arms. His arms instantly came around her, relieved to see her.

"Finally!" Rory said into his neck. "I've been waiting for a half an hour."

Jess laughed lightly and pulled back to look at her. "Sorry. Class ran a little over tonight."

"I forgot you had class tonight," she frowned for a moment but her happiness swept over it. "I have good news."

"And you're gonna explode if you don't get to tell me, right?" He smirked at her. She nodded fast and he couldn't get over how adorable she was when she was eager.

"Yes," she grinned. "My grandparents are back together!"

Rory waited for a response but Jess wasn't sure what to say. He knew she had wished for this and he was glad everything worked out for them and for her. "That's great. What happened?"

"I think Grandpa hit Grandma's car and he drove her home or something like that," she shook her head, still beaming. "But the point is she asked him to come home."

"Wow," he said and he really was happy for them.

"I know right?" She gushed. "And that's not even the best part."

"What's the best part?" Jess asked.

"They're getting remarried!" Rory exclaimed.

"What?" He almost burst. He thought they were married still.

"Well, renewing vows," she clarified, probably being able to read his thoughts. "But apparently Grandpa wants me be his best man and Mom will be maid of honor."

"You're best man, huh?" He smirked. "This will be the first time I'll be able to say at a wedding how I've seen the best man naked then."

"You better not go ahead telling people that at the wedding," she warned teasingly.

"I'll make you a deal," he told her. "If you do a Liv Tyler, Crazy music video thing for me when you get home, I won't tell."

Rory frowned. "When I get home...But aren't you coming?"

"I didn't know I was invited," he replied.

"Don't be silly," Rory said. "Of course you're invited. You're my boyfriend."

"Yes but your grandmother hates me," Jess pointed out.

"She doesn't hate you," she shook her head and suddenly became very interested with the buttons on his shirt. "She doesn't know you."

"Ah," he nodded. "The excuse for family not liking significant others. I was wondering when I was going to get it."

Rory looked up into his eyes, seriousness on her face. "It's true. As long as you didn't come to the house with a black eye."

"Did I get beaked by a swan and not know?" He teased. "Why would I have a black eye?"

"Why would your response to a black eye be a swan?" She countered, a smile tugged at her lips.

"Have you seen the one down by Larson's dock?" He asked. "That thing has a vendetta against me."

Rory almost burst out laughing. "You should meet Michel. He's afraid of swans, too."

"I'm not afraid of swans," he defended.

"Sure you're not," she nodded one.

"I'm not," he said even more seriously.

"I believe you," Rory held in another laugh.

"No laughing," he pointed a finger at her.

"If I get to laugh just this once then I'll make the Liv Tyler deal," she countered.

Jess pretended to think for a moment. "Okay, deal."

Rory reached out her hand to mark the deal and so did Jess. They shook hands and as soon as they separated, Rory started laughing. Jess watched her as she couldn't contain her laughter. She actually ended up holding her stomach because she was laughing so hard.

"You done yet?" He asked her.

She shook her head. "A few more minutes and I should be good."

"That seems like enough laughing," Jess said.

"Not yet," she tried to stand up straight to look at him but just laughed again. "I think this earns a lot of laughter."

"Yeah?" He raised his eyebrow at her, a test.

She raised hers back. "Oh yeah."

"I'll give you a lot of laughter," Jess rushed towards where she now stood, almost across the room. Rory wasn't quick enough and he caught her in his arms. He lifted her up, her feet dangled in the air and she couldn't stop laughing.

His arms were around her stomach, holding her to him. Now Jess was laughing too and he could tell Rory now laughed for the same reason as him. She made no move to get away and he made no attempt to put her down.

Jess held her body close to his in his arms. She made no objections and let him hold her, her back to his chest. Rory squealed happily and he laughed with her. He wasn't convinced he was invited to the vow renewal but one thing was for sure at least. He definitely got her to stop thinking about swans.

…...

"My mother is fast asleep in my bed and clothing my Hello Kitty pillow," Lorelai said as she climbed down the stairs in her house. "And yes I have pictures."

Rory laughed as she remembered the night's events. It had been days since the big announcement that the Gilmores were renewing their vows. To their surprise, Emily came over as Richard was having a bachelor party and they threw an impromptu bachelorette party for the elder Gilmore woman. To say it went well was an understatement.

"I can't believe how much rum Grandma drank," Rory collapsed on the couch.

"How much rum did she drink?" Lorelai wondered.

"I've never seen her drink," Rory pointed out and got a look from her mother. "Friday night dinner doesn't count. She does not get drunk at Friday night dinner."

"That's true," Lorelai fell into the seat beside her. "I'm not sure I've ever seen her that way, either. It's pretty entertaining."

"As entertaining as the dirty pasta?" Rory teased.

Lorelai giggled. "But it looked like a -"

"I know what it looked like," Rory held her hand up and laughed.

"Not words a person wants to hear out of their daughter," she frowned. "That you know what the dirty pasta looked like."

"Or what you'd want to hear your mother say," she pointed out.

"All right, that's fair," Lorelai agreed. "How do you think we did? Rate our party skills."

"Hmm," she mused. "Seven."

"Seven!" Lorelai threw her hands into her lap, a dramatic gesture. "Why a seven? We even scared Gypsy from my mother and it is not easy to scare Gypsy."

"I guess our score is higher," Rory caved. "I mean, after all, we did put it together pretty quickly."

"See?" Lorelai reached her hand out to make a point. "I told you."

"I guess it wasn't exactly my first pancake," Rory sighed. "It was more of yours anyway."

"First pancake?" Her mother questioned.

"When you make pancakes," Rory explained. "You know."

"I don't make pancakes so I don't know," Lorelai commented. "And neither do you as a matter of fact."

"I'm not saying we make them," she almost laughed. "But you know how when someone makes pancakes, the first one gets burnt. It's the practice pancake. This was almost my practice pancake."

"Aww, Hun," Lorelai wrapped an arm around her daughter. "I don't know how you got to a pancake reference but you're sad so I'm gonna cheer you up."

"I was actually thinking about going to sleep," she suggested. "I was up a long time."

Lorelai nodded. "Hmm. And there's a phone in your room right?"

"You know I have a phone," Rory replied, suspicious of her mother.

"Interesting," she nodded again. "And you wouldn't happen to be planning on calling a certain someone? A certain someone who maybe lives above the diner currently."

"Since you're so cleverly trying to ask me if I'm going to call Jess…" she said and her mother pouted. "Yeah. I might."

"Good because you know it's been an hour since the call," Lorelai said.

"I have not called him that much!" She exclaimed.

"He called you, you called him," she teased. "Even your grandmother noticed.

This got Rory's attention. "Oh? Did she say anything?"

She shook her head. "Not really. But she had one of those thinking looks that she does."

"Oh," she said.

"You okay?" Lorelai asked her daughter.

"Yeah," she nodded.

"You don't look okay," she said.

"I'm okay," Rory clarified. "I'm better than okay. Jess and I talked about his dad the other night."

"Oh, that's great," Lorelai smiled at her. "I know you were wondering."

"Not just that though," she said. "Remember what I told you? About being scared he'd leave? I told him and his response was that he never could."

Lorelai made an aww face. "See? What did I tell you?"

"I know," she ducked her head. "I guess I gotta have more faith and open up, right?"

"No," she smiled. "I think people - me and Jess included - love you just the way you are."

"Okay, Billy Joel," Rory laughed as she stood up and kissed her mother's hair. "You sleep, too. We got a big day tomorrow."

"Will do," she saluted. "Just one problem though - Emily Gilmore is asleep in my bed."

To that, both Gilmore girls laughed.

…..

"Let me guess - Rory roped you into going to the wedding, too?"

Luke appeared from his side of the apartment into Jess'. Jess looked away from the mirror where he was fixing his tie and nodded. "She used the 'you're my boyfriend' guilt trip."

"Lorelai used something along the lines of 'if I don't bring you, I'll have to bring Michel'," he frowned.

"Why would she have to bring Michel?" Jess asked, mystified.

"I guess because whatever torture she'd have with me, she'd take it on me for not going," he replied.

Jess let out a small chuckle with a head shake. "Gilmores. Gotta love the logic."

"Have you seen where you're being seated yet?" Luke asked.

"No," he shrugged. "I figure I'll see when I get there."

"So you don't know where Emily Gilmore placed you?" He asked.

"No, why?" Another shrug.

Luke looked stunned. "You don't care if she didn't sit you by Rory?"

"Why wouldn't I be sitting by Rory?" Jess countered. "Its not like I was a last minute RSVP. They knew I was coming and they know we're together."

"But this is Emily Gilmore," Luke pointed out.

"I'm aware," Jess commented.

"Emily Gilmore follows her own rules," Luke continued.

"Yes but see so does your girlfriend," Jess said. "Rory may have told me that she caught her mom with the seating arrangement last night."

"Ah," Luke nodded in understanding.

"Any seating blubber will be on her from what I hear," Jess smirked in victory.

"All right, you win," he said. "But if she switched it back, don't come crying to me."

"Uncle Luke, when you ever seen me cry?" Jess asked.

"Do you want me make a list?" He smirked back. "Because I could."

Jess pointed at his uncle. "Fine. You win that one."

"Now, come on," Luke said. "We're picking up Lorelai and Rory at their house."

Jess grabbed his jacket and with one final check in the mirror, he was done. "All set."

….

Luke and Jess reached the Gilmore house not long after. The walk was short as usual and both were almost relieved. If it had been any longer, they'd find a way to bail out before they made it. Jess, deep in his mind, thought about how he probably wouldn't bail. He was doing this for Rory after all and he knew deep down his uncle felt the same.

"Stop," they heard Rory's voice from inside.

"My baby's a woman," came Lorelai's voice in an almost mesmerized tone.

Both men glanced at each other. "They're not talking about your sex life I hope."

"I hope not either," Jess replied as his uncle opened the door.

"Hello?" Luke called out. "The front door was open."

"Luke?" Lorelai called out from an unseen room.

"And Jess," the younger one called.

"Be down in minute!" Lorelai yelled.

Jess and Luke both decided to sit down. They made sure their formal wear remained formal before they made themselves comfortable. Seconds later, Rory was down the stairs, a beaming smile on her face and not at all dressed for the wedding.

"Hi, Luke!" She happily said as she walked over to him and gave him a quick hug while he was seated. She moved over to Jess and kissed him quickly on the lips. "Hi, hi."

"Hi," Jess smiled back at her which made her smile bigger.

"Let me finish it for you," Luke groaned. "Hi, hi, hi, hi."

Neither of them replied to him. Jess looked over Rory, noticing her clothes. "You're not dressed."

"We're getting dressed there," she explained.

"Hey, Rory, your front door was open," Luke interrupted. "It wasn't like that all night, right?"

She shook her head when Jess spoke again. "You can get dressed there?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "They have changing rooms."

"i didn't know you could get dressed there," Luke remarked.

Lorelai came down the stairs, a garment bag in hand. "Okay, let's motor!"

"You're not dressed either," Luke said.

"We're getting changed there," she said and only was missing a 'duh'.

"You two look nice," Rory commented. Her eyes stayed on Jess almost a bit too long. "Especially you."

"None of that," Luke interrupted. "We gotta get going especially if the two of you aren't ready yet."

"We're coming," Lorelai pouted. "So bossy."

"You're the one dating him," Rory said to her.

"Yes, I am," she beamed. "And you know, this isn't the only time he can be bossy."

"Whoa!" Rory exclaimed. "Daughter here!"

"Nephew!" Jess said after her. "Too much information."

Lorelai still beamed and shrugged. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Yes," Luke answered here. "Now that you've grossed out the younger generation, let's go."

Lorelai's smile fell. "Well, all right. But I get to control the radio."

"Deal," Luke agreed.

They began to walk out the door and were gone in seconds. Rory turned to Jess and straightened his tie. "You do look very handsome, you know."

"Thank you," he gave her a smile. "I'm sure you will, too. Hottest best man to ever be chosen."

"I bet you say that to all the girls," she teased.

"Nah, you're special," he said.

"Don't you forget it," she kissed him quick.

"Come on, kids!" Lorelai yelled from outside. "Quit with the kissy face and get out here!"

"Coming!" Rory shouted back then turned to her boyfriend. "You ready?"

"I hope so," he said as he took her hand. "If not, there's an open bar right?"

Rory laughed as they began to head outside. "Of course. You think my mother would be able to make it without one today?"

Now Jess laughed. They got to the car and disconnected their hands. Rory climbed into the backseat first and Jess climbed in after. Luke was already in the car and Lorelai got in once they were settled.

"Now, I know you're on a backseat but no funny business because we're here too," Lorelai said to them.

Luke groaned while the three of them held in laughs. "Jeez."

….

They got to the place on time and after some comments about Luke's pants and to follow, an Ernest Hemingway remark that Jess held in his response to, they were separated. Lorelai and Rory went with Emily while Luke and Jess went to find their seats.

They were told they can sit anywhere on either side and they decided to be neutral and sit on Richard's side because Emily had a whole flock of DAR members plus on hers. There was a woman named Marilyn who asked Luke if he was a gardener. Jess laughed while his uncle didn't understand.

The wedding began and Jess watched as Rory and her grandfather came out to stand beside the priest. She looked beautiful still, he thought. Her hair was curled but tied behind her head in a bun. Her outfit was less of a suit and more business casual. He smiled at her when her eyes landed on him and she smiled back.

Soon, Lorelai walked out and he could see the love in her and Luke's eyes as they looked at each other. Jess felt he had to turn away because it felt too private. Emily soon walked out with all the grade she had. The wedding itself was romantic. Jess wasn't one for sappy speeches and true love but when he looked beside the groom, he realized maybe he is.

After the wedding, they all walked down the aisle. Jess watched Rory walked back the aisle and she gave him another smile. There was a look of surprise on her face as she reached the end of the aisle. At first, he thought it was because Luke said Christopher was here but when he looked behind him, he knew what it was. Or more specifically, who.

Logan was at the wedding.

 **A/N: I'm so sorry this is late. But I'm writing it, I already started the next chapter so maybe it will be up in just a few days. That's good news right? :)**


	42. Wedding Bell Blues

**A/N: I think this might be the last chapter and then an epilogue :(**

Rory wasn't sure what to do after you walked out of the wedding. All of the wedding's she had gone to was in the same place as the reception. This one and the wedding's at the inn, even Sookie's. She waited until the guests were allowed to get up and go to their tables before she went to Jess.

Lorelai saw Logan and remembering him briefly, she turned to her daughter. Rory nodded and made a sign she was going to see what was going on. She made her way through Aunt Totsie and various family members. Her goal was to get to her boyfriend right now.

When she finally found Jess, he stood against a wall in the far back. She gave him a small smile as she approached and he gave her one in return.

"I didn't know he'd be here," she said once she reached him.

Jess shook his head. "It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," she said, misunderstanding his words to mean it didn't matter if she knew or not. "Because I'd have talked to my grandma about it, said it might be awkward."

"Rory," he tried again. "It doesn't matter that he's here."

She looked confused at first. "What?"

Jess took himself apart from the wall and reached for her hands. "I told you he can't come between us. So what if he's here?"

"My grandparents are friends with his parents," she said in a grumpy tone.

He laughed. "That makes even more sense why they'd invite them then."

"You're okay with this?" She asked.

"I'm okay with this," he nodded.

"Have I mentioned that I love you?" She smiled.

"Not today, no," he smiled back.

Rory moved herself closer and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend's neck. She kissed him softly and sweetly, a smile tugged against his lips. When she pulled away, he leaned his forehead against hers then kissed her again.

There was an announcement made, introducing Mr and Mrs Richard Gilmore. Rory and Jess quickly got to their seats as everyone else left standing did as well. Her grandfather made a speech about when Lorelai was young and an ear infection and how Emily had been obsessed with a song about a man named Bill. Her heart swelled when he told her just for today, his name was Bill.

Rory's hand made its way to Jess as she watched her grandparents dance. He looked over at her, so intent on them in front of her. It didn't seem so bad, he thought, the idea of doing this in front of friends and family. Not if it was with the right person, he added to his own thoughts.

When the bride/groom dance was over, others joined on the dance floor. Lorelai dragged Luke out there which made Rory beam with happiness. She didn't want to ask Jess, she wasn't sure he'd even want to. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her dad and he watched her mother with Luke. He didn't look disruptive, he just seemed sad.

"I'm gonna go see my dad real quick," she whispered to Jess.

"Oh," he said, surprised. "Okay. Take your time."

"I'll just be a few minutes," she promised and kissed him quick before she stood.

Christopher stood not too far from her table. The walk wasn't long and when he noticed his daughter on her way to him, a smile appeared on his face. "I was wondering if you'd come say hi."

"I was getting there," she said as she hugged him. "How are you? After everything?"

They pulled apart and Christopher took a deep breath. "Good, I think. I've been doing a lot of thinking."

"And?" She prompted.

"And life is short," he confessed. "It's ridiculous to hold onto grudges or put important things off. You have to live life to the best you can."

Rory nodded. "I like that."

"Me too," he agreed then decided to change the subject. "So that's the boyfriend over there."

"Yes, Jess is here," she confirmed with a look over to him. He wasn't paying attention, apparently Marilyn found him.

"He meet the grandparents before?" Christopher wondered.

"Yes," she said. "They didn't talk much, though."

"It must be serious," he commented. "Usually when you bring someone to a wedding, it's serious."

"It is serious," Rory admitted. "I think it is. It hasn't been that long that we're together but the feelings have been there for longer."

"Oh, wow," he said, almost surprised. "I didn't know - I wasn't sure it actually was."

Rory looked at her father with a smile. "I'm in love with him. And as much as I am with him, he's in love with me."

Christopher nodded, a small smile on his own face. "That's good. I know I don't have much a say in your life because of the past but you deserve that. To be loved and to be happy."

"Thank you," she replied. "And you do get a say. I still want your opinions."

"That's definitely nice to hear," he told her.

"Dad?" She called to him, now looking down towards to the floor.

Christopher watched her. "Yeah?"

"How do you know someone's the one?" She asked shyly.

"I think it depends on how they make you feel," he said after a moment. "How does he make you feel?"

"Like the most important person in his world," she smiled to herself.

"And you feel the same?" She nodded. He smiled again. "Then I think you have your answer, kiddo."

…..

Jess finally got a second to breathe. He'd be asked questions by random members of the Gilmore family and other guests. Rory had left him to go talk to her dad and his uncle was still out on the dance floor with Lorelai. People wondered who he was, how he was connected to the family. They seemed even more interested when they found out he was Rory's boyfriend.

It was one of those moments he'd love to excuse himself to smoke. His pockets were empty, however, because he promised Rory he wouldn't bring them tonight. So instead he went out into the hall and looked around.

It was a nice building. He'll give it credit for that. There wasn't much to look at or places to go, though. He was just about to turn around and go back inside when he stopped by someone blonde.

"Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you," Logan said in an almost friendly tone.

"Didn't disturb me," Jess shrugged. "But I am going back inside so if you'll excuse me."

"I was actually hoping we could talk," he said.

"About what?" Jess stuffed his hands into his pockets, his stance was still.

"Rory," Logan answered. "Of course."

"There's nothing really to talk about," he said. "Me and Rory are together."

"See, I'd accept that if a few events hadn't occurred," he explained.

Jess raised an eyebrow. "Events?"

"You and Rory got together during our arrangement," he commented. "You see, you have to doubt how serious she is about you right there."

"Or you have to just deal with that a girl said no," he said back.

"But she didn't say no," Logan continued. "She didn't say no for many times."

"You're trying to get me angry," he said calmly. "And honestly, it's kind of working. But I'm not angry at Rory."

"Her grandparents invited me here tonight to try to make her see what she could have," he changed the direction. "Sure, they're friends with my parents but they know she could have so much more."

"Isn't it up to Rory to decide what she can have?" He retorted.

"Yeah but come on, you know what's going to happen," he said.

"Pretend I don't know," he replied. "Tell me what's going to happen."

Logan grinned. "She's gonna come back to me."

Jess scoffed. "You know, I actually thought that despite hearing how you're okay with Rory being casual or how you told someone in a relationship you have feelings for them, you might actually be a good guy somewhere. Rory liked you, that had to give you some points, right?"

"Rory liked me for a lot of reasons," he replied. "And maybe, in time, she can love me."

"Well, she loves me now," he said back. "And whatever you have planned, it isn't going to work."

"This wasn't my plan," Logan said. "It was Emily's. She invited me, she figured out how I felt and said to give this a shot. She told me Rory isn't happy or living to her relationship potential and that I should come and remind her of the good times we had."

"So you're an innocent bystander to a rich woman's plan?" He questioned. "This, right now, someone's got a gun on you and forcing you to say all this or something?"

"Well, no but -"

"Then you're in on the plan."

Jess began to walk away but Logan followed. "The plan got me thinking about how I feel. It didn't seem like a bad idea, winning her back. I care about Rory and I think I deserve a chance to prove it."

"Here's the thing, Logan," Jess said all too serious. "She's not some prize to be won. And who she gives a chance to is up to her, not us. Now if she decided she did want you, I would step aside but that would be her decision to make."

"You would?" Logan raised his eyebrow.

"Yes, I would," Jess nodded. "Because not that it's any of your business but I love her. I want her to be happy and if she ever decided I'm not what would make her happy, I'd let her go."

"Jess?"

Both men turned to look at the girl who stood near a doorway behind Jess. Rory looked worried but neither could tell how much she heard. Jess wouldn't be surprised if Logan knew she was there for a while and let him go on.

"How's your dad?" Jess asked her.

Rory began to walk forward to the two of them. "He's good. What's going on here?"

"We're just chatting," Logan answered.

She gave him a look that said she didn't entirely believe him. "Jess?"

"Just talking," he agreed reluctantly. He definitely didn't want to make a scene in front of her. Instead, he put his arm around his girlfriend and tried to walk her away. "Come on. Let's go back to the reception."

"All right," Rory said as they walked away. She didn't look back at Logan to see his reaction.

When they turned a corner, Rory stopped walking. They still weren't at the hall yet but they were away enough Logan wouldn't see or hopefully not hear them. Jess stopped too, waiting for her questions to begin.

She took a deep breath first. "What was really happening out there, Jess? You and Logan 'just chatting'? I'm not stupid."

"You're not," he agreed. "I'm just not sure how to tell you what happened."

Her expression turned worried. "What? What is it?"

"Promise you won't get mad," he said seriously.

"Jess, you're freaking me out," she told him.

Jess shook his head. "Don't be freaked out. It's just...Your grandmother invited Logan not just as a guest but to get back together with you."

"What?" Rory exclaimed. "But - she knows about you and me! What - how -"

"Rory," Jess said and both his hands came to her face. "Look at me."

He saw her eyes shined, unshed tears waited to come out. "What?"

"I told you before that Logan can't come between us," he told her. "I meant it. The only way he could break us up with this plan is if...If…"

Jess seemed at a loss for words or more like he didn't want to say them. Rory searched his face, his hands still on hers. "If what?"

"If you wanted to be with him, too," he finally said.

Rory laughed, surprising her boyfriend. "That's what you're worried about? That I'm going to decide I want him or actually anyone else and leave you?"

"I wasn't worried per se," he replied. "I guess it clicked in my head that it was possible."

"Do you remember what you said to me when I worried about you leaving me?" She asked and he nodded. "I couldn't leave you, either. It's not a choice anymore. If I go anywhere, it's with you."

Jess took that as a moment. He leaned in and kissed her deeply. They backed up so far that Rory's back pressed against the wall. She didn't care as his hands trailed from her face to her waist.

The kiss intensified and she could taste him. Her teeth pulled on his bottom lip playfully and he made a noise which made her smile. Rory pulled apart first after that, knowing she won't be able to stand upright much longer if it carried on.

"If I wasn't sure before, I definitely would be now," Jess said to which he earned a blush.

Rory's mind clicked on what he had just told her however and the bubble burst. "My grandma did this? She tried to break us up?"

He shook his head. "I don't know if she actually tried to break us up but she wanted Logan try to convince you to be with him."

Rory sighed, her hand rubbed at her forehead in frustration. "I can't believe this. I have to go talk to her."

She began to walk away but Jess' hand grabbed her wrist. "Hey, wait a minute. Later you can do whatever you want but right now, I really want to dance with my girlfriend."

Her expression softened as a smile appeared. "You'll dance with me?"

"I've been wanting to dance with you all night, Ms. Gilmore," Jess replied smoothly.

"I'd love to dance with you," she said but she pointed at him. "This still isn't over though. What she did wasn't right."

"And I agree," his hand slipped into hers and they walked back to the reception hall hand in hand. "But it can wait. Besides, what would better than showing her what we can do on the dance floor?"

"Dirty," she whispered and he smirked.

They reached the right hall and strolled right to the dance floor. Jess wrapped his arm around Rory's waist and the other held her hand. She put her hand on his back and smiled. "This isn't so bad."

"No, it's not," she agreed. "And you're not so bad at this, either."

"I never claimed to be bad at it," he grinned.

Rory gasped. "Jess Mariano, you are full of surprises."

"And maybe later you can unwrap them," he teased.

Rory blushed a deep shade of red. When she composed her expression, which wasn't so easy when he smirked like that in front of her, she spoke again. "I thought I was reenacting the Crazy music video."

"Oh, you still are," Jess said, a playful glint to his eyes.

"So...It sounds like I'm doing all the work tonight," she teased back.

"Well, you can if you really want," he shrugged. "I do like looking up at you after all."

"Jess," she looked down to hide her scarlet face.

He tugged her closer to his body and whispered into her ear. "What do you say when this is over, we rent a room? We'll reenact, add a few changes, unwrap, unwind."

"That doesn't sound bad," she agreed as she imagined it. It was hard to push back the new blush that wanted to form but she did it.

"Plus we can be as loud as we want," he told her with another smirk.

"You had me at rent a room," she smirked back as they continued dancing.

…

"Hey, kid, I think we're gonna get going," Lorelai said as the party started to wrap up. Luke had excused himself to get the Totsie smell off him and Jess has gone with him for safety in numbers.

"Okay," Rory smiled. "Um, you and Luke just head back. Me and Jess are gonna hang out."

"Hang out?" She wondered. "What would you - oh."

"We figured it might be nice," she said. "To be alone."

"You two have a whole apartment to yourselves at home," she teased her daughter.

"It's not the same," Rory shook her head with a small smile. "It'll feel like a vacation, you know?"

"I know," Lorelai smiled back. "When will you be back?"

"Probably morning," she shrugged. "Afternoon."

"Uh-huh," Lorelai nodded with a suggestive look on her face.

"Hey mom?"

"Yeah?"

"Grandma invited Logan tonight for us to get back together," Rory told her.

"What?" Lorelai was stunned. "I can't believe - I'm going to go find her right now and -"

"Mom, no," Rory held her back. "I'm not doing anything about it. Not tonight, at least."

"You're not?" She asked.

"No," she shook her head once. "It doesn't matter what she does because me and Jess, it's real. It doesn't matter that he was here for that purpose."

"So what then?" Lorelai wondered.

"I'll tell her," Rory took a deep breath. "And I will also tell her that Logan or anyone else isn't going to come between us because he's the one. I don't want anyone else."

Lorelai smiled at her daughter, so grown up. "And judging by the way Jess looks at you, he would say the same thing."

Rory nodded. She saw Luke and Jess were on their way back which got another smile to appear on her face. Lorelai looked behind her and her own smile appeared.

The two of them approached and Jess put his arm around Rory's waist. Luke looked at Lorelai affectionately, aching to get out of there. "You ready to go?"

"I'm ready," she said. "These two, on the other hand, are staying behind."

Luke turned to the younger generation. "What? Why?"

"Luke, honey," Lorelai turned his face back to her. "Don't ask questions. It's a young in love thing."

He looked to both of them then back to Lorelai. "Okay. All right."

"Now, say goodbye so we can get going," she suggested. "It's getting late and I don't want to have keep you up even later than planned."

"That may be more information that we needed," Jess said.

"Hey, you're staying behind overnight with my daughter," she pointed at him accusingly but teasingly.

"Fair enough," Jess said as he pulled Rory closer.

They said their goodbyes quickly. As Lorelai was hugging Rory, she whispered 'be safe' almost like a chant, three times in a row. Like if she said it three times, it proved it will happen just like Beetlejuice. Rory almost laughed as she thought about how safe they always were.

Once the adults were gone, Jess turned to Rory. "I got a surprise for you."

"A surprise?" She couldn't help but beam. "What kind of surprise?"

"One you'll really like," he said and kissed her cheek.

They began to walk and in a small distance, she saw Emily and Richard. They were saying goodbye to some guests and before she could go over there and start a scene, she took a deep breath. Not today, she told herself. She'll do it at any time that isn't their vows renewal, not after that separation.

They tried to sneak past her grandparents. Jess knew the avoidance tactics. It was all moot anyway because Emily saw them. "Rory! Are you leaving, too?"

"Yeah, grandma," she turned and smiled at her, despite how she felt. "We were just about to head out."

"Surely you can spare a moment to say goodbye to your grandmother, can't you?" she asked happily, unaware of the mood.

"Of course," Rory hugged her tightly. "Goodbye, Grandma. It was a beautiful ceremony."

"It was, wasn't it?" Emily beamed as she and Rory let go.

"It was," Richard chimed in. "Even if I had to be called Bill."

"Oh, bite your tongue," Emily said with a big smile.

"I will but only because the most beautiful woman in the world is once again my wife," he replied.

Rory saw the love between her grandparents and the happiness in her grandmother's smile. She still couldn't believe she would send someone to try to break up a relationship just because she didn't approve but she also knew there was a lot of things she didn't understand that her mother might.

"Rory, are you all right?" Richard asked.

"I'm fine," she nodded, giving a small, closed smile. "I'm just tired."

"You better get going home then," her grandfather said.

"Soon," she said, leaving out the part where they weren't going home yet. She hugged him goodbye too and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for letting me be best man."

"Thank you for agreeing to be best man," he countered.

"Anytime," she smiled at him and then walked back towards Jess. "Bye, Grandma. Bye, Grandpa."

"Goodbye, Rory," Richard said. "And Jess, thank you for coming."

"Of course," he nodded with his own small smile as his arm came around Rory's back and they turned to leave. It didn't go unnoticed that Emily looked disappointed about them leaving together but that was for another day.

…..

The door to the hotel room opened and Jess flicked the lights on. Rory gasped at the size and searched the walls. He watched her in amazement as she took in her surroundings.

"This is beautiful," she said, continuing her search to spin to see every corner of the ceiling. "How did you afford this, Jess?"

"Don't worry about that," he replied. "Do you like it?"

"Yes," she smiled when her search landed on her boyfriend's face.

"Then that's all that matters," Jess explained.

"Jess," she shook her head, smile still plastered on her face. "You didn't have to do this."

"Yes, I did," he put his arms around her waist and tugged her as close as possible. "Because tonight we're celebrating."

"Celebrating?" She asked. "Celebrating what?"

"I finished my book," Jess told her with a calm face.

Rory gasped and jumped. She screamed excitedly and hugged him tightly. "Oh my god! Jess! Why didn't you tell me?"

Jess laughed as he hugged her back. "Because I wanted to surprise you."

"I'm definitely surprised," she pulled out of the hug but not away. "Can I read it?"

"Not yet," he laughed again. "You remember I met some friends in my class?"

"Yeah, Matt and Chris," she recalled. "What about them?"

"It turns out Matt's dad owns a small book publishing company," he explained. "And Matt may have mentioned my book to him and that I was writing one so I sent him it."

"You already sent it!" She gasped and hit his shoulder playfully. "Why am I just learning this?"

"Because I wanted to be sure," he answered. "Rory, I'm getting published."

"Oh my god," she hugged him again. "Jess. That's amazing. I'm so proud of you."

"When we get home, I have a copy for you," he said.

"Now you're gonna make me wish we went home," she pouted.

"What if I find ways to distract your mind from the book?" He kissed her collarbone to her shoulder.

"That...could be possible," she replied slowly.

"But first," he stood straight in front of her again. "A promise is a promise."

The night continued with promises being fulfilled and new promises being made. The next morning when they woke up, Jess was first awake and he snuck out for breakfast. Rory woke up to the smell of coffee and donuts with a smile on her face.

There was kisses and whispered words, blankets tossed and last night remade. When it was time to go, Rory got dressed feeling happier and more confident in the relationship than ever. She could tell Jess felt the same way.

When he was done getting dressed, he came beside her with an arm around her waist. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she smiled at him, Stars Hollow and their life ahead on her mind. "Jess, let's go home."

 **A/N: sorry this is so so late and I hope it's not ooc. I hope you like it too :)**


	43. Bon voyage

**A/N: I honestly didn't mean to take so long for the epilogue. I've been having writers block lately in a whole different sense. I know what I want to write but the idea of sitting down and actually doing it, I haven't been able to for some reason. I wanna try to get these two other things I wanna write - one my readers will especially like and the other not so much probably - done too and hopefully I get to those too. Wish me luck and thanks for being so patient :)**

 **It's not really a big chapter but more of a wrap of what happens, the story and based on the series finale. Hope it's okay :)**

"What's going on?"

Rory looked out the window to see just what exactly her mother wondered about. Through the rain and in the center of Stars Hollow, was a crowd. The crowd stood underneath some kind of cover to shield them from the rain and from what she could see there was tables and a mini stage. What is going on seemed like an understatement.

Before Rory could turn to Lorelai and tell her she didn't know, two bodies came out of the crowd with umbrellas in their hands. They raced towards Lorelai's newly repaired Jeep and knocked on the windows once they approached.

Zach opened Rory's door while Jackson opened Lorelai's. Both women were out of the Jeep and under the umbrellas within seconds. They didn't have time to ask what was going on before they raced through the rain to the crowd. As they got closer, Rory couldn't help the giant smile that burst on her face as she realized why they were here.

Members of the town - Luke, Lane, Sookie, Liz, TJ, Gypsy, Miss Patty, Babette and more stood in front of a sign that said "Bon Voyage, Rory."

It wasn't the sign or the people that made her almost melt in that moment though. At the end of the line, away from others but obviously very much a part of it stood Jess. He looked shy and anxious, as if he awaited her reaction. She shook her head in amazement as it clicked. He did this for her.

…..

During her junior year at Yale, Paris had asked Rory to move in with her in this apartment that veered off the safe side. One night after another back and forth for his classes, Jess had collapsed onto Rory's bed with a heavy sigh. She casually ran her fingers through his hair as he suggested that maybe he should move closer to her and his classes.

When Rory had visited the apartment she'd love in with Paris, Jess had come with her. There was multiple locks and the walls were ruined. "That is definitely not a Doo wap band," Jess commented on the residents downstairs.

Rory sighed in agreement and once Paris left the room, Jess wrapped his arms around Rory's waist. "I have an idea."

"What's that?" She asked curiously.

"Move in with me," he suggested so casually that Rory almost believed he didn't see it as a big deal as she did.

At first, she wasn't sure. Move in with her boyfriend? But the seconds ticked away and Jess let go of her waist, sensing her hesitation. She didn't know why she didn't answer, she called out his name and jumped into his arms immediately.

Jess caught her with a confused look on his face. Rory beamed brightly at him. "Yes. I'd love to move in with you."

He kissed her right then and there, in the middle of the guest room of Paris' new apartment. The empty room felt filled to every last inch just as her heart had felt when she saw the returning smile Jess gave her. She didn't care if it seemed cheesy. She was in love.

…..

Rory embraced everyone in the line awaiting her. Some of the familiar faces were tear filled and others were smoking brightly as they held back tears. Luke held her the longest, he told her how proud he was of her and how much he was going to miss her. She nodded into his shoulder, tears coming from her own eyes. She'd miss her stepdad just as much as he was gonna miss her.

Liz wrapped her arms tightly around Rory when she reached her. "My girl. I can't thank you enough. You've made my baby boy so happy."

Rory felt more tears come down at Liz's words and hugged her tightly back. "He's made me happy, too."

Finally when she made it to the end of the front line, she found herself face to face with Jess. He gave her a signature smirk and she laughed lightly. "Come here."

Jess stepped forward first and wrapped his arms around her. Rory buried herself into him, sniffling and not wanting to let go. "I'm gonna miss you so much."

"You're gonna miss me making you breakfast," he joked.

"You figured me out," she sniffed and let go, pulling apart from her boyfriend of two and a half years.

Jess wiped the tears from her face and gave her a small smile. "You're gonna blow them away, Gilmore."

She nodded and before she could spill more tears, moved forward to the next line. It was a surprise when she found Emily and Richard waiting in the background. They were obviously proud of their granddaughter and what she achieved. Rory, on the other hand, was unsure of the future and if this was the right decision.

Everyone sat down once Rory was done greeting. Lorelai gave her a smile that told her how proud she was of her. Her daughter gave her one in return and the smile grew as she looked beside her mom.

…..

One year ago, Lorelai felt lost. She came to Luke and asked if they could get married. Luke would joke it was an ultimatum but admit the choice was clear. It was either be with the woman he loves or lose her. It was obvious which one he chose.

That night, Lorelai and Luke called Rory and Jess at their Hartford apartment at 1 am. They told them to pack a bag and that they were taking a trip. Hurriedly, the younger generation packed up with no questions asked.

Rory would never forget the look on her mother's face or the twinkle in her eyes as she said they were going to elope. Emily had been hurt at first but in the end, she understood.

That night, in a classy hotel room far out of the town of Stars Hollow, Rory and Jess had a serious conversation. It was the first time they really, truly talked about their future. Jess played with Rory's fingers, stared down at their twined hands, as he confessed that maybe, one day, marriage wouldn't be so bad, with the right person.

With an almost shaky breath, Rory managed to agree. She stared at their hands too as she replied how maybe, one day, she could see herself getting married. But to the right person, of course, she added.

The implications hung in the air that both of them viewed the other as the right person. When the conversation ended, so did talk for the night. Jess and Rory made love multiple times that night, never wanting to move apart from the other. Rory would never forget how safe she felt that night.

It was that night that she knew her and Jess were officially forever.

….

Everyone was grateful when Taylor finished speaking. His speech was weird to say the least but it had sentiment in it and Rory couldn't help but smile at the thought behind it. Taylor called her to the makeshift stage and with an encouraging look from both her mother and her boyfriend, Rory stood up.

"Thank you, Taylor for that unique tribute," she said when she got to the microphone. "I still can't believe you all did this. When I found out I was leaving, I was worried about what I was leaving behind."

She looked pointedly at everyone as she said this, ending with a longing look at her own table, to the people most important to her than continued. "I love this town. I loved growing up here and I love all of you. Thank you so much for doing this. It truly means so much to get this kind of send off...I feel like I'm on the verge of gushing."

Rory let out a small laugh and to that, everyone else did along with her. She caught Lane's smile and wet eyes and remembered their talk on the porch the night before. The comforting talk of old times and Lane's reassurance of how she was going to conquer the world came to her. She gave her a smile back and she knew Lane knew.

"I'm gonna try not to ramble before I cry too much," Rory said jokingly. "One more thing though. To my mom who is just everything to me and everything I am and who I'm gonna miss so much. I wouldn't have made it without you being you so thank you."

Lorelai wiped at her eyes as Rory walked off the stage and came back to the table. She took one look at her daughter and smiled through the tears. She sat down beside her and Jess, Luke on his wife's other side. Emily caught Rory's eye this time and she whispered a thank you to them as well.

…..

"I can't believe you came," Rory hugged her grandmother tight while everyone else chatted the night away.

"Of course we came," Emily said when they parted as if Rory just sputtered nonsense at her. "You're leaving tomorrow. It's your last night here and we wouldn't miss it for the world."

"What time are you leaving?" Richard asked his granddaughter.

"7 am," Rory almost made a face. She wanted to hate it but really, she was excited. "Bright and early."

"Oh my," Emily said. "And for a bus?"

Rory shook her head. "Plane. The bus comes after."

"And you're following Senator Obama?" Richard asked.

"I am," she smiled as brightly as she could. "I don't know how long exactly, if it goes until the election exactly but it'll be a good experience."

"Well, we're going to miss you," Emily told her.

"I'm going to miss you too," she said significantly. "Both of you."

Lorelai came up to the three of them, her arm slid around Rory's shoulders. "Am I missing anything good?"

"Goodbyes," Rory answered.

"Ah," she nodded. "Do I want to hear the goodbyes or am I going to get emotional myself?"

"Oh, Lorelai," Emily sighed but with affection. They'd come so far, Rory thought to herself. "I did want to talk to you before we leave, though."

"Oh?" Lorelai raised her eyebrow. "What about, Mom?"

"I was thinking about loaning you money," she told her.

"Huh?" asked Lorelai.

"For what?" said Rory.

"Expanding the inn," Emily explained. "Standard terms, no interest. We would just need to sit down and hash out the details of course but I'm sure we can come up with a time to do so -"

"Mom," Lorelai interrupted. "Why don't we just talk about it at Friday night dinner?"

Richard looked pleasantly surprised to hear this as did Emily who quickly tried to hide it. "So our Friday night dinners are going to continue then?"

"We might as well," Lorelai shrugged. "I've gotten used to it."

"Well, all right," she smiled for a moment. "But just don't wear jeans."

"When have I ever worn jeans to Friday night dinner?" Lorelai questioned.

Emily did her best to shrug now. "I don't know but it very well may be Rory who enforces the dress code. I'm just saying I don't think jeans are appropriate."

"Fine, spandex and a tube top it is," Lorelai countered.

It was that moment when Richard took Rory aside for a moment. "I wanted to speak to you in private before you go."

"What is it, grandpa?" She asked, curious.

"Seven years ago, I barely knew my granddaughter," he began. "As the years have progressed, I've gotten to know you for who you are and not just my family."

"Grandpa," she said with her eyes shining.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He wrote something short on it and handed it to her. "Here."

"For Fez," she read out loud. When Rory looked up at him again and hugged him tight.

"It's a reminder," he said. "If you ever need reminding of your dreams, just remember Fez and the meaning behind it."

"I'll do better than that," she moved apart. "I'll look at this paper and think of you. Thank you."

"You're welcome," he told her with a smile of his own.

They said goodbye again as he walked back to Emily and Lorelai. Rory watched them with nothing but love on her face. This was her blood and she wouldn't have it any other way.

Behind her she heard a voice. A voice she would know anywhere. "I'm not sure the guest of honor should be left alone."

Rory turned and instantly wrapped the new arrival into a hug. "It was you, wasn't it?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Jess pretended to be confused.

"This," she said as she moved out of their hug. "This whole thing. It was you, wasn't it?"

"Me and Luke," he corrected. "we couldn't let you leave without a proper goodbye, Ror."

"Thank you," she smiled with wet eyes for the millionth time tonight. "Not just for this even though this blew my mind. I didn't think I'd get to see everyone and now I have."

"It was nothing," he said modestly.

"No," she shook her head. "It was something. Thank you for everything, Jess. You - you're amazing. No matter how long we're together, you continue to surprise me in ways I never expected. I love you so much."

"Ditto," he told her with a small smile then he kissed her lightly on the lips. "Come on. I want to take you somewhere real quick."

…..

The summer after Rory's sophomore year at Yale, Jess had an idea. Apparently Jimmy had called and suggested before the school year kicks up and his classes resume that he come to California now, only if he wanted to though.

He ran the idea by Rory and she instantly said to go. She told him she'd miss him but it was something he needed to do and she understood why he needed to do this. Jess was confused and asked, "but aren't you coming?"

She jumped into his arms, happy, and surprised. "I wasn't sure if you'd want me to."

"Of course I do," he told her. "If I do anywhere, I want you by my side."

"Ditto," she said and it became their thing to say after that. Lorelai didn't understand why they didn't just say they felt the same and part of why Jess continued to use it was her confusion much to Rory's dismay. She wanted them get along but in their own way, they did and she was good with that.

In California, Jess got to know Jimmy. He met Sasha, Jimmy's long-time girlfriend and Lily, Sasha's daughter. Rory and Lily got along right off the back and the three of them bonded over their love for reading.

At first they were staying at Jimmy and Sasha's. The longer time went on with them in a cramped room and after an unfortunate incident where Jimmy didn't knock and walked in on Rory and Jess not at the worst time but not at the best, it became awkward and they rented out a hotel nearby.

They stayed for the whole summer and Jess actually had become on good terms with his father. Rory was proud of him for taking the chance and when they got back home, he took another chance. He made things right with his mother.

…..

"It's pouring!" Rory exclaimed as she and Jess ran to the bridge. His hand held hers and they didn't stop until they got there. "Oh my god."

On the bridge was another tent. Their walk slowed and Jess turned to give her a smirk. "You didn't really think I'd take you out here to get soaked, did you?"

"Well, I am a little soaked from the run," she replied. "What is this?"

"This is for you," he said obviously.

"I see," she nodded with a small smile. "I thought the party was for me?"

"The party is for you and everyone," he stated. "This is just for us."

"Jess," she sighed in contentment.

"Come on," he tugged her along and sat her down on the bridge. "I wanna talk to you."

She murmured an okay as he took a deep breath. "What's going on? Please tell me you're not breaking up with me before I go."

Jess laughed. "No, nothing like that. I promise."

"Okay," she nodded again. "Then what is going on? You're acting weird."

"I'm just gonna get right into it," he said then looked straight into her eyes. "This is not a proposal."

"Okay?" She asked, more confused.

"It's not a proposal but it's a promise," he continued. "I don't want to be that guy why proposes because you're out of school or because you're leaving. But I do want to marry you, someday, if you want to marry me. So right here and right now, I'm giving you this."

He slipped out a box from his pocket and handed it to her. She almost gasped. "If it's not a proposal, then what's this?"

"It's a promise ring," he said as she opened the box. "It's lame and probably a stupid idea but I want you to know someday when the time is right, I will propose to you for real. I don't want you be surprised or to be taken off guard that you can't answer. I love you, Rory and I want to be with you as long as you'll let me."

"Oh, Jess," she kissed him intensely. Her hand cupped his cheek and his was on her waist. Her other hand held the box, afraid to open it but also excited to. She broke the kiss and finally lifted the lid. "Oh my god."

"It's not much -"

"It's perfect," she told him as she moved to slip it on.

"Wait," he said and took the ring from her and placed it on her finger for her. "There."

"I don't know what to say," she admitted.

"Anything but that you'll say no when I finally do it," he joked.

"Never," she said seriously and kissed him again.

….

When Rory told Jess about the Obama campaign offer, he was stunned. Neither of them expected it and neither of them knew what to do. The offer was amazing and Rory had met this online journalist named Hugo at a fancy party she'd gone to a year earlier. He read her writings and thought she had real potential. Jess couldn't argue with that.

At first, Rory didn't say yes. She didn't say a flat out no but she didn't want to leave her mom or Jess or Luke. It was confusing, wanting to take this opportunity but not wanting to leave. After much encouragement from the most important people in her life, she'd finally listened.

Jess had given her a special edition copy of his first novel, The Subsect to take with her. She'd worn out her first copy so much that she was grateful for the new one. This one had a special added chapter, for her eyes only. He'd written it just for her and she couldn't be more in love with him than she already was after that.

…..

People started to go home when it got too late. Emily and Richard Gilmore had been long gone and few were left. Rory sat at a table with Lorelai, Jess, Lane, Zach. Miss Patty was wide awake while her usual partner in crime, Babette left. Taylor called curfew and Mrs Kim had taken home Lane's twin boys by then. She still couldn't believe her best friend was a mother now but somehow she could see Lane didn't mind because she loved her boys.

Whenever she thought of how Lane and Zach had gotten married and were already parents, she'd find her thoughts travel to Jess. They were only twenty two years old but she could see that in their future. It probably seemed crazy to think but she knew he was her soulmate, the love of her life. She risked a look over to her boyfriend and smiled.

He was tired, she could tell. Luke had already begun cleaning up and she knew Jess usually helps out. Tonight, he seemed exhausted after he gave her that ring. It was as if he stayed awake just for that moment. She knew he wanted to be awake when she left in the morning and that was why she let him doze off whenever he had.

Rory was nervous about the future to be honest. In less than twenty four hours she'd begin her new job of following around Barack Obama on his campaign for President of the United States. It could be a long time before she was officially back home again and Jess promised he'd try to visit her in her locations. She'd miss her mom and everyone else too and she didn't really know how to leave, not exactly. She'd never done it before like this.

But she knew soon she'd experience what it's like for herself. There was still that part of Rory's mind that wished she could stuff her mom, Jess and Luke into her luggage, even little Paul Anka, the dog her mother got on a whim. She'd miss everything that made stars hollow both sane and crazy. She'd miss her grandparents. It was gonna be a long year, she thought to herself.

Finally, Lane and Zach had said their goodbyes. Lane made Rory promise that she'd wake her in the morning before she goes and she told Jess to come hang out, see Steve and Kwan. He promised too and the tiredness hung in his eyes. Miss Patty and anyone else left too.

The four of them sat in their seats then, Luke had came back when he saw the last of the guests leave. Lorelai took her daughter's hand and smiled sadly. "It's gonna be time soon."

Rory nodded sadly too. She remembered the conversation she'd had with her mom after she'd come home from Lane's. Lorelai said they still had time, it wasn't time yet to be sad. Her words not only held the meaning that she'd be leaving soon but that it was time to be sad.

Luke left the tables outside. The rain had long cleared out so he made note to remember tomorrow. He wrapped his arm around Lorelai as Jess took Rory's hand on their way back home. They needed to get some sleep before her flight and they preferred to sleep on a bed.

Lorelai and Luke said their goodnights when they got into the house. Lorelai's eyes shined as she spoke to Rory. "Do you need anything else for tomorrow?"

"No," Rory shook her head. "You've given me everything I need."

Her mother nodded at that and held her lips together tightly in an attempt not to cry. She told her she loved her and hugged her to her before heading upstairs. Luke hugged his stepdaughter and told her he was proud of her before he left too.

That left Rory and Jess alone to which she took his hand and led him to her room. Neither said a word but Rory kissed him lightly on the lips. There was no questions being asked, no words being spoken.

They kissed slowly and undressed at the same pace, not wanting to rush. Rory tried to memorize every inch of his skin as she traced her hand all around him. She didn't want to forget this, what being with him felt like.

Jess sensed a difference in her as they laid on the bed afterwards. He brushed her hair out of her face and she sniffed. "Hey. What's wrong?"

She shook her head and pulled the blanket tighter around her. "I don't want to leave, Jess. I thought I could do it but I don't think I can."

"Yes, you can," he gave her a small smile. "You're Rory Gilmore. You're an amazing writer and they want you on this trail. You're gonna kick ass and make everyone proud and then you're gonna come home and we're gonna plan our future."

"I'm scared," she confessed. "What if I fail?"

"You won't fail," he told her, his hand pressed to her cheek as he looked into her eyes. "And even if you do, I'm gonna be right here to bring you back up."

She nodded, tears fighting the surface. "I'm gonna miss you so much."

"Ditto," he said and she smiled a small one back. He kissed her softly and she cuddled herself into his arms. "Now go to sleep. You have a big day tomorrow."

"Yes, dear," she tried to joke.

Rory closed her eyes, her admittance in her fear and Jess' words making her brave. She was determined to do this, she was determined to make those she loves proud. One more look behind her and she could see Jess had already fallen asleep.

It was going to be okay, she told herself. She had her mom and Luke, Jess, her grandparents, Lane, Paris, and the whole town. She even had her dad and Jess' family. It gave her hope and she knew as long as she had them, she'd be okay.

 **The end.**

 **Thanks for reading :)**


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